


monsters of men

by krissuwu



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Urban Fantasy, Different Coping Mechanisms, Enemies to Lovers, M/M, Magical Creatures, Sex Magic, Sexual Content, Similar Trauma, Slow Burn, trigger warning for graphic violence/depictions of gore
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-21
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:36:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 31,227
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27141190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/krissuwu/pseuds/krissuwu
Summary: Baekhyun first learns to despise Chanyeol the moment their swords meet in a clash of blinding light.ORIn which Baekhyun is a physically scarred outcast marooned on a mountain in a valley, Chanyeol is a Ministry investigator, and they stumble upon a dead elf that sends Baekhyun’s life into a whirlwind of magic, darkness, and a fight for his life.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Park Chanyeol, Side MinKey - Relationship, Side XiuChen - Relationship
Comments: 17
Kudos: 14





	1. prologue

**Author's Note:**

> hi everyone! :-) it’s me, with a new fic! 
> 
> this was originally written for monsterfest, but i had to drop out to be able to fully focus on giving this fic the attention it deserves. as such, it is nearly complete, so i will be posting chapters every few weeks to give myself enough time to finish and edit everything properly! for now just the prologue will be posted, and i’ll post the first chapter exactly a week from today.
> 
> anyways! comments and kudos are very much appreciated, and i also now have a ko-fi! if you want to commission me you can find me at Ko-fi.com/krissuwu
> 
> for fic context, this is partly based on the book series chaos walking by patrick ness, which is why every chapter after the prologue contains a quote from the books. it’s a fantastic series and i highly recommend reading it :-)
> 
> anyways! i hope you enjoy reading this, as it is my baby and i’m extremely proud of it. thank you for reading!

“One cannot be brave who has no fear”

-Marissa Meyer,  _ Supernova _

———————

_ “...and on that night there was the great supernova, the death of a star, and the birth of another. All the force of a dying sun rushing into a living son.” _

_ “How does one live with such a power? The cosmic energy of energy itself coursing through your veins, the strength to create and destroy universes, all within your reach.” _

The hallway echoes with the sound of heels clicking on marble, a high, nasally voice reads out from a leatherbound book.

_ “And that’s where they reach the question: should that power be allowed to live inside one human being, and should that being be allowed to share it with another, to bond with, and share the power of destruction?” _

_ “The answer we’ve reached is a simple no.” _

The marble floors are stained red, the boots step over a lifeless form on the ground. The heel grazes over a face.

_ “The greatest power is freedom. Should that individual also acquire this power, it could be the end of all as we know it. It is better to keep it locked up, where it cannot be reached by the wrong hands.” _

The book shuts harshly, echoing through the silent hall. A low thrum vibrates through the room, as if it was alive. The form, swathed in shadow, takes a look around the hall, at the bodies littered around everywhere. The floor, red and white, blooming against the marble like roses. 

“Now isn’t that, something, hmm?” The voice rasps. There is no answer. “ _ The greatest power is freedom _ .” 

The form bends down, a hand reaching out to stroke the face of one of the bodies, brushing through the grotesque, scarred skin; great bloody ropes across the whole face, wrapping it up in a bow like a present. A thumb dips into the empty eye sockets, running along the bloody rim. The hum grows louder. “Well, you’re free, now. Isn’t that the greatest power of all?”


	2. living small

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> enter: baekhyun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! this is the first chapter of the fic, the second will be posted in either 2 or 3 weeks, depending on how i decide to sort out the schedule :>)

_ “War makes monsters of men” _

__ __

__ __ __ -Patrick Ness,  _ Monsters of Men _

**__________________________________________**

“What kind of dog is that?”

Baekhyun jumps, startled, looking up to see the waiter behind the counter glance at him with a kind eyebrow raised. He’s cleaning a used shake glass with a washrag. 

“Bernese Mountain dog?” The man tries again, and Baekhyun belatedly realizes; ah, this is small talk.

“Yeah, I think.” He says, clearing his throat awkwardly, glancing at the dog sitting on top of his feet under the lunch counter. “I’m not sure, really. She was a stray.”

“She’s very beautiful.” The waiter says, a friendly smile on his face. 

“Thanks.” Baekhyun nods, poking about the remnants of his dinner on the plate. Under the counter, the dog nips at his ankles, as if she’s angry with Baekhyun. The man nudges her with his shoe, silently telling her to behave herself. She doesn’t get the message, moving on to Baekhyun’s shoes. He drops a piece of steak under the counter to placate her.

After dinner, Baekhyun steps outside into the sticky spring night air, nudging his unruly dog away from a public trash can. “Lumi, I swear if you pick up one more rotten chicken leg you’re sleeping outside tonight.” He scowls. In retaliation, the dog darts between Baekhyun’s legs as he’s walking, making him stumble and nearly face plant on the sidewalk. A few passerby give him dirty looks, scowling down at his un-leashed dog. Baekhyun grumbles, shoving his hands in his jean’s pockets. He’s tried putting Lumi on a leash multiple times, all resulting in several painful bites all over his body. “Damn spirit dogs.” He mumbles under his breath. 

He unlocks the door to his truck, opening the passenger door first to let Lumi hop inside. She rests her head over the center console, giving her best puppy eyes to Baekhyun as he climbs into the driver’s seat. “Asshole.” He rolls his eyes, reaching out to scratch between her ears. Lumi huffs happily, her tail thumping against the car door.

The drive back to the house is long, as driving anywhere in the countryside tends to be. And dark. The only lights on the drive are the houses spaced every few miles. When he reaches the house nearly an hour later, he notices the lights are on inside. Sighing, he puts on the parking break on the gravel driveway, opening Lumi’s door and locking up the truck. The dog instantly shoots towards the front door, shoving her way through the doggie door and leaving Baekhyun out by himself. Of course, the door’s unlocked. 

“Welcome hooome!” Comes a voice from the kitchen. Baekhyun smells something cooking, and he regrets already eating dinner. 

“Hey, Kib.” Baekhyun calls, dropping his keys on the table and kicking his shoes off. “What are you making?” He pads into the kitchen, where Lumi is already badgering Kibum for scraps.

“Rabbit stew.” Kibum’s standing on his toes to reach the giant pot set on the kitchen stove. Baekhyun wrinkles his nose, opening the fridge to grab himself a beer. He takes note of the steel traps by the washroom. A shiver wracks through his body.

“You know there’s a butcher in town, right? And I bought a whole pound of pork belly last week.” Baekhyun takes a seat at the kitchen table, opening his beer with one of the souvenir bottle openers from downtown.

“I wanted to go hunting.” Kibum gently nudges the dog away from his calf. “The asshole’s close and it’s bothering me.”

Baekhyun beckons Lumi over, stroking her ears to distract her from the smell of cooked rabbit. He looks up at Kibum in confusion. “What do you mean by close?”

The other man ladles some stew into two different bowls, placing one under the table for Lumi and one in the middle of the table. He sets two spoons down, leaving one for Baekhyun in case he wants to try some. “I mean… he’s nearby. I can feel all his dumb emotions and, I don’t know, it’s really annoying.” Kibum’s voice is so casual as he starts spooning stew into his mouth that he completely misses the problem with the thing he just said.

“Hyung, wait a second.” Baekhyun holds a hand up, the gears in his brain whirring into overdrive. “If Min-,” Kibum sends him a death glare when the name almost slips from his mouth. “The  _ asshole _ , sorry, is nearby, what does that mean for me?”

“What are you talking about?” The other man asks around a mouthful of stew. “The world doesn’t revolve around you.”

“Shut up.” Baekhyun rolls his eyes. “I mean, you know what his job is, why is he nearby? We’re the closest gateway for miles.”

Kibum pauses eating for a second to consider the question. Lumi keeps eating below them, inconsiderate of their thoughtful silence. He sets the spoon down. “I didn’t think about that. I really was thinking he was trying to come see me, or something.”

“Wow, Kibum, the world doesn’t revolve around you.” Baekhyun snickers around his beer bottle, and Kibum sends him a withering glare. “Seriously though. If he does show up, let me deal with him, you can go spend some time in the forest, I’m sure everyone misses you very much.”

The man across the table is silent, pushing his stew around in the bowl with his spoon. “They don’t. I know that already.” He shovels a huge bite of stew into his mouth to avoid elaborating.

Baekhyun is quiet, sipping his beer in thought. “Well, it doesn’t hurt to try. Just tell them the truth, that it’s over between you and the...the asshole.” That at least manages to draw a small smile out of Kibum. “Then you can burn an effigy together, problem solved and friendships mended.”

“Burning an effigy sounds fun.” Kibum grins, finishing off his stew. Baekhyun stops him from getting up, taking the empty bowls and washing up the cooking dishes. Living with Kibum means cleaning his pots and pans every single night. He refuses to try take out, or any other kind of restaurant food, and cooks all of his own meals, all made of strange meats that Baekhyun would never consider trying. Kibum says that human food is “poisonous to his pallette”. 

By the time Baekhyun finishes drying the dishes and puts everything back into the cupboards, Kibum is asleep at the table, snoring into his placemat. Lumi whines, nosing him for attention. “Sheesh, hyung.” Baekhyun mumbles, but the familiar feeling of fondness spreads through his body, warm. 

He picks Kibum up, carrying him bridal style to his room, careful not to bump his friend’s head on anything on the way. Kibum’s room is decorated with countless potted plants, growing on every available surface. He knows he made the room to mimic the forest as much as possible, but the scattered dirt on the ground makes Baekhyun cringe horribly as he feels it stick between his toes. He tucks Kibum into bed, pulling his blankets up around him and patting his head gently before leaving, turning the light off on his way out. 

In the hallway, Baekhyun finds Lumi waiting for him. “Are you staying tonight?” Baekhyun puts his hands on his hips, cocking his head to the side. 

She thumps her tail, looking to the side. “I’ll take that as a no.” Baekhyun nods, walking her to the front door and unlocking her doggie door. “Be safe, don’t get eaten.” Lumi wags her tail in affirmation before pushing through the door and out into the night. Baekhyun watches her go through the window in the door, making sure she’s okay before heading to his own room.

Baekhyun lays in his bed for a while, staring at the stars he created on his ceiling, hugging his penguin plushie to his chest. His room is warm, the stars casting a gentle glow over everything. Before he can fall asleep, he makes a mental note to himself to check up on the temple and all the towers, make sure that everything is running okay. The ‘asshole’ being around gives Baekhyun an uneasy feeling, like he’s forgotten something at home, but he’s too far out to turn back. 

But, that’s a problem for morning Baekhyun to deal with, not sleepy Baekhyun, whose eyelids are drooping more and more as the minutes go by, so he reluctantly allows himself to drift off to sleep.

__________________________________________

“I did some thinking last night.”

Kibum’s voice startles Baekhyun when he steps out of the shower. He’s in the kitchen, as usual, standing over a pan full of something that smells suspiciously like eggs. Baekhyun scratches the back of his wet head, padding over to the kitchen, confirming his suspicions: they’re eggs.

“Where the hell did you get those?” Baekhyun wrinkles his nose, crossing over to the coffeemaker. 

“Rude.” He hears Kibum say over the sound of coffee brewing. “The neighbors have chickens.”

Baekhyun pauses, looking back over his shoulder. “The neighbors that live five miles away?” Kibum hums in response, and Baekhyun just shakes his head, adding sugar and creamer to his coffee. 

“Anyways.” Kibum tries again once Baekhyun is seated at the table, pulling his phone out to check the weather like he does every morning. “If he comes by, I think we should pretend that we’re dating.”

Baekhyun chokes on his coffee. “What?”

“Yeah, I’ll tell him we really want to get bound, and then he’ll finally agree to break off our bond!” Kibum says it like they’re discussing adopting a pet. Speaking of pets...Baekhyun takes a look around the kitchen and sees that Lumi hasn’t come back yet. He frowns, she normally is back by morning. Even more reason to make the rounds today. “What do you think?”

Baekhyun shakes his head distractedly. “I think you should ask him nicely and maturely like the fully grown hundred-year old nymph you are. It wouldn’t work anyways, dummy, you know the law.”

Kibum throws a piece of scrambled egg at him. “Don’t be a dick.”

“Love you too.” Baekhyun grins over his coffee mug, downing the rest quickly. He rinses it out and places it in the dishwasher. “I’ve gotta go now and get to work.”

“Which one?” The other man asks from the table. 

“Both.” Baekhyun sighs, dragging his coat on and grabbing his keys. “See you tonight, and don’t steal any more eggs from the Lee’s!” He’s out the door before Kibum can start cursing him out, unlocking his truck and immediately blasting the heat to chase away the morning chill.

There’s mist on the dirt road as he drives, hugging the hills all around the countryside. Baekhyun turns the radio on to lighten the creepy country morning atmosphere. The radio show hosts say that it’s a beautiful day in Seoul, and that the sun is shining, perfect humidity. Baekhyun takes a long look at the valley around him, and he thinks that living in Seoul at this time of year must be ideal. He imagines huge buildings, blinding night lights. And celebrities. People who live in Seoul probably have all met a celebrity at some point.

Baekhyun works at the coffee shop just a block away from the train station. It’s a long commute to make every morning, but his hours are flexible enough for him to not have to wake up at the crack of dawn. It’s set by the river, on the corner of the block next to an Italian place. 

Jongin opens the door for him at the back with a toothy smile on his face. “Hey, buddy. How’s your morning so far?”

“I’m older than you.” Baekhyun pouts, grabbing an apron from the hooks on the wall. “I’m fine, my housemate has acquired a taste for kleptomania, so that’s interesting, I guess.”

“He’s a real piece of work, from what I’ve heard, at least.” Jongin nods along sagely. “Does he even pay rent? Maybe you can use that to keep him in line?”

Baekhyun laughs. Jongin’s heart is always in the right place, so he goes along with it. “Never thought of that before, I’ll keep that in mind for next time.” He smiles to himself at the thought of even  _ trying _ to evict a century-old nymph with the power to burn his whole house down.

They open the shop together, sharing a tea cake behind the counter while they wait for customers to start coming in. “Is Kyungsoo coming today?” Baekhyun asks through a mouthful cake.

“Yeah, later, though.” Jongin nods, looking up at the sound of the door bell tinkling. “He said he had some business to take care of with the police, don’t know what that’s about.” 

Baekhyun brushes the crumbs off his hands, frowning and standing by the coffee machine. What on earth is Kyungsoo doing with the police? As far as Baekhyun knows, there haven't been any break ins or issues with the shop. He makes a mental reminder to call him about it later, another thing on his to-do list for the day.

The day only gets weirder. Some time after noon, the bell above the doors rings, and Baekhyun makes to retreat to the espresso machine, until he sees who it is. Jongdae and Minseok are here. In the valley. In his coffee shop. He stares at the pair, blinking. “What the hell are you two doing here?” He stammers, glancing behind them to make sure no one was listening. Jongin was in the back, grabbing more milk from the fridge. Baekhyun approaches the register, grateful there is no one in line behind his two friends to see him.

“Just stopping by to see how you’re doing.” Jongdae gives him his best innocent smile, rocking back and forth on his heels. Next to him, Minseok jams his hands into his jean pockets. “So… how are you doing?”

“Cut the crap, Jongdae.” Baekhyun deadpans, tapping his thumb against the register. “There’s something going on, isn’t there?” He hears Jongin coming back behind him. “What can I get you today?” He grits his teeth, and Jongin pays him no attention, opening up the milk and starting a latte. 

Since Minseok holds all the braincells between the pair, he looks up at the menu in thought. “Two...macchiatos, please.” 

“Coming right up.” Baekhyun simpers when he hands him his card. “Two macchiatos, Nini. I’ll come sit with you on my lunch break, sit at the corner booth.” He adds in a hushed whisper. The pair thank him, Jongdae throwing a childish wink over his shoulder. 

When Jongin finishes the drinks, Baekhyun offers to take them. “I’ll bring those out, I’m going out on break.” He takes off his apron, heading over to the booth in the corner, near the hallway to the bathroom, out of sight from the rest of the customers, his head hung to hide his face. Jongdae and Minseok squeezed themselves into one side of the booth, pressed close together and laughing with stars in their eyes. Baekhyun wrinkles his nose, stupid bonded pairs and their dumb PDA. He clears his throat, offering the drinks.

“Thank you, Baekkie.” Jongdae grins, taking their drinks. Baekhyun sits across from them, folding his arms. 

“Why are you here?” Baekhyun asks.

“Wow, just get right to it, huh? Do we need an excuse to visit our dear childhood best friend?” Jongdae tries, sipping his macchiato. Baekhyun stares him down, his gaze unwavering. “Fine, you’re right, we’re here on ‘business’.” He puts air quotes around the word, rolling his eyes. “I’d never willingly leave Jeju for  _ this  _ place.” He murmurs as an afterthought.

Baekhyun frowns, a creeping sense of dread already taking over him. “Does this have anything to do with Kibum’s old partner being nearby, too?”

“He’s here, too?” Minseok furrows his eyebrows.

Baekhyun nods. “Yeah, and it’s freaking Kibum the fuck out, it’s starting to get obnoxious.”

“Well.” Minseok folds his hands on the table while his partner sips his drink, giving himself a foam mustache. “Someone has been opening gateways all over the country; Jeju, Busan, Pyongyang-.”

“North Korea?” Baekhyun’s eyes widen. “Seriously?”

“Witches aren’t obligated to follow the imaginary boundaries created by humans.” Minseok curls his lip, as if Baekhyun should have known that. As if he knows anything about their world. Baekhyun sneers at him, kicking his shin under the table. “Anyways, there’ve been more and more reports of hauntings in smaller towns dotted around those places, nothing major yet, but enough to warrant a check up, which is what we’re here for.”

Baekhyun takes a moment to take all that in, his pondering only interrupted by Jongdae asking his partner if he can finish his drink. That would explain the presence of Kibum’s old partner. As far as Baekhyun knows, the gateways he’s in charge of are undisturbed. But then again, he hasn’t checked them in almost a week. He looks back up at his friends, his responsible, dutiful friends, who came all the way from Jeju to check if Baekhyun’s doing his job right. His neck burns in embarrassment. 

“So.” Baekhyun says. “What does this mean?”

“Don’t know yet.” Minseok shrugs, leaning back in the booth. “Could just be some low-level witch trying to stir something up, or it could be serious, there’s not enough information yet.”

“Stop being so boring.” Jongdae whines. “No more of this for now, please? Baekhyunee, seriously, how are you?”

Baekhyun presses his lips in a thin line, but eventually relents. He really did miss his friends, after all. “I’m okay. I have a real job now, obviously, I won’t even ask how you found out about that-.”

“Kyungsoo.” Minseok interjects helpfully.

“Of course.” Baekhyun waves his hand dismissively. “I can pay for the house now, so that’s cool, I guess. I don’t really work the register, though, for obvious reasons.” He sweeps his hand over his face. Jongdae looks like he's about to say something pitying, so Baekhyun quickly picks back up. “I made a new friend, Jongin, he’s at the register right now.”

Jongdae and Minseok crane their heads to look at the tanned, smiling boy behind the counter, serving a young woman who blushes at his attention. “He looks nice...” Jongdae says, but there’s a pout on his face. “...For a Jongdae replacement.”

“I’m not replacing you.” Baekhyun rolls his eyes. “I never see you guys, of course I’m going to make new friends.” 

“Human?” Minseok asks, so Jongdae doesn’t start a fight with Baekhyun in the middle of the coffee shop.

“Yup.” Baekhyun nods. “I told him I fell in a tiger enclosure as a kid.”

That makes Jongdae guffaw, nearly choking on his coffee, his jealousy over Jongin already forgotten. Baekhyun finally smiles. He really missed Jongdae, so he says so.

“We missed you, too.” Jongdae reaches over the table, grabbing Baekhyun’s hand, running his fingers along his knuckles. Minseok grabs Baekhyun’s other hand, not wanting to be left out. “We’ll be here for a week or so, we have plenty of time to catch up.”

“You guys can stay at the house. I can sleep in Kibum’s room.” Baekhyun offers. “It’s way too big for two people, anyways. Kyungsoo lives downtown now.”

“Sounds great, Baek.” Minseok pats his hand assuringly. “We’ll let you get back to work now, thanks for the coffee.” He smiles, standing up from the booth. Jongdae follows after him.

“Alright then.” Baekhyun stands too, shoving his hands in his pockets. He waves them off as they leave, then turns back to the counter, ready to get back to work. He can’t help the longing he feels when he thinks of Jongdae and Minseok. The way they can just up and leave Jeju whenever they want, with no consequence, no fears of repercussions. Baekhyun allows his mind to wander, to imagine himself going on a little vacation to anywhere in the world, anywhere he wants. He snaps out of it quickly when Jongin calls an order back to him.

As it turns out, Kyungsoo  _ doesn’t _ come to work later. “He’s probably still caught up with the cops.” Jongin waves off the issue easily, because he’s a human. He wouldn’t understand why that’s worrisome to Baekhyun. “You know how investigations go...or whatever it is he’s there for. Cops are slow.”

“Hmm.” Baekhyun hums, staring out the window of the shop. From here he can see the mountain in the distance; he knows which one it is by now, where his house is perched overlooking a plateau. Nothing  _ looks  _ out of the ordinary, but Baekhyun knows from experience how looks can be deceiving.

The rest of the workday is peaceful, no more nosy witches come poking around to see if Baekhyun is doing his job right. At least none that he recognizes, and there aren’t many in that pool.

As always, Jongin offers to lock up, even though it’s definitely Baekhyun’s turn to do so. The kid’s heart is just too pure to say no. Baekhyun thanks him profusely, and promises he’ll lock up tomorrow, even though he knows Jongin will never let him keep good on that promise. 

The sun is setting when Baekhyun walks outside to his truck. He sighs; he still has so much more work to do, what with checking up on the gateways and all. The plateau is huge, and it’ll take him at least two hours to go through everything. He steps on the gas, wanting to get back as quickly as possible.

It’s completely dark by the time Baekhyun makes his way up the mountain, the moon hanging between the twin peaks on the other side of the valley. He parks the truck on the end of the gravel road, hopping out and pulling his jacket tighter around himself. It’s always so damn freezing up here. Why can’t Kyungsoo take some of the responsibility for this place? Technically he was listed as a guardian, too. 

Baekhyun conjures a light for himself, a miniature star hovering above the palm of his hand using the leftover energy hovering around his headlights. When he reaches the gate, putting in the key to unlock them, Baekhyun stills. It’s already open. 

His heart rate spikes, and he quickly reaches into his belt for the pen he keeps in a holster, igniting it to a full sized beam of light. The star fizzles out into nothing. 

Baekhyun was absolutely  _ not  _ prepared for this. He’s never had a situation where someone-, or some _ thing _ -, broke into the temple. That coupled with Minseok and Jongdae’s arrival, Kibum’s partner being nearby, and whatever the hell was going on with Kyungsoo, puts Baekhyun so on edge, that he jumps at every rustle of tree branches, every clink of the wind chimes. It doesn’t help that the temple was especially eerie at night, the overgrown plants casting monstrous shadows onto the cracked, ancient walls. It used to be an elvish temple, so there’s old entryways and hallways everywhere, carved with a whimsical architecture that Baekhyun hasn’t seen anywhere else before, the halls are shadowed and worn down by time.

Then there’s the hum.

Ever since Baekhyun was a kid, learning how to take care of this place alongside Kyungsoo and the latter’s grandfather, he’d heard this low hum. It thrums from every corner of the temple, as if it were still alive, as if the buildings themselves were alive. It makes Baekhyun’s skin crawl.

He rounds the corner leading to the main courtyard, where there’s a fountain set in its center that somehow still runs, perfectly functional. He scans the area, searching for signs of a disturbance. 

Baekhyun freezes, tensing around the beam in his hands. There’s a tall, shadowy form in the corner of the courtyard, near one of the stones. Baekhyun braces himself for attack, creeping closer as quietly as he can. He raises the beam, ready to strike-.

The form turns around, and Baekhyun’s light beam is met with a real, steel sword. Baekhyun stumbles backwards, nearly losing his balance. He looks up and sees a man: a freakishly tall, clad in all black, hands clenched around a long, steel sword, man. A baseball hat conceals his face, shadowy just like the rest of him.

Baekhyun recovers from the shot, lunging forward to strike again. The man meets his attack with his sword. “Woah there, little dude.” A deep voice comes from under the hat. The sword ignites, swathed in blue flames.

Baekhyun only falters for a second, gritting his teeth and flexing all the muscles in his arms, shoving the man’s blade away. “Who are you, and how did you get in here?” He aims for his other side, but the man is just as quick, swinging his sword to block the attack. White hot sparks jump when their blades meet, and Baekhyun leaps away. The other man is quick to counter.

“I believe  _ I  _ should be the one asking  _ you  _ that.” The man grunts. His sword comes down heavy, and Baekhyun just barely blocks it in time, his knees buckling under the weight of it.

He grunts, sweat dripping down his forehead. In a desperate move, he conjures a ball of light in his free hand, absorbing the flame from the man’s sword and flinging it up into the stranger’s face. The man cries out, dropping his blade and stumbling backwards. Baekhyun takes advantage of his disorientation, lunging forward and pressing him up against the wall of the temple, holding the light beam to his throat. “I asked,” Baekhyun growls, pressing the beam against the bare skin of the man’s throat, watching his Adam's apple bob as he gulps. “who are you,” the beam sizzles against his skin in a small puff of smoke. “and how did you get here?”

The man tilts his head up, trying to back further into the wall away from Baekhyun’s light beam. Now Baekhyun can see his face from the light of the beam; the man has big wide eyes, straight nose, and smooth, unblemished skin. Baekhyun feels a pang of jealousy. He quickly shakes it off. “Answer me.” 

“Okay okay okay!” The man holds his hands up above his head. “I’m here on Central Ministry business, I’m an investigator for the foreign relations office, just, please put the sword down, I need to talk to the groundskeeper, uhm,” He scans over Baekhyun’s face, his eyes stuck on the spots on his face where the shorter man knows the skin is marred and twisted. “sir?”

Baekhyun narrows his eyes, unmoving. “ _ I’m  _ the groundskeeper.”

The man opens his mouth, then closes it again. “Are you… you’re human, right?”

Baekhyun snarls, using all his strength to shove the man away from the wall and onto the ground, pointing the tip of his sword to his forehead, his foot pressing down on his chest. “Yes, I’m a fucking human, and how do I know you are what you say you are?”

“My name is Park Chanyeol, I’m here with another officer, his name is Choi Minho, I’m legit, I swear! We picked up a disturbance in one of the satellite towers here, and that’s why I’m here. Please don’t cut my head off, I’m too handsome to die.” The man-, Chanyeol, apparently-, pleads, his eyes wide and frantic.

Baekhyun falters at the mention of Minho-  _ the asshole’s _ \- name. He removes his foot, lowering the light beam. Chanyeol scrambles to sit up, pushing himself up on shaky legs. Baekhyun watches him wearily, glancing around in search of other signs of life, anyone to corroborate Chanyeol’s story. “Where’s Minho, then?” Baekhyun keeps his distance from the man.

Chanyeol brushes himself off. “At our hotel, I came by myself.” He moves to step towards his fallen sword, but Baekhyun blocks him, hands twitching around the beam. The taller man frowns. “Dude-erm, I mean, sir, can you put that thing away?’

“I’d like to see some I.D before I just let my guard down.” Baekhyun narrows his eyes, trying his best to look intimidating. His heart races at a million miles an hour, the adrenaline still pumping faintly. 

Chanyeol stares at him, a look of disbelief on his face. “Fine.” He digs around in the pocket of his hoodie, pulling out a few crumpled pieces of paper that fall to the ground before he finds what he was searching for. “Here.” He extends what looks like a leather wallet out to Baekhyun, reaching out as far as possible as to not make any kind of contact with the groundskeeper.

Baekhyun snatches it from him, flipping it open with one hand. Inside there’s an I.D photo and a fancy piece of cardstock paper, the letters embossed with gold. It reads:  _ Park Chanyeol, lower-house investigator for the office of foreign affairs.  _ Just to be sure, Baekhyun passes a light trace over the paper, searching for any signs of forgery. Nothing. He grumbles, tossing it back to Chanyeol, who scrambles to catch it. Baekhyun shuffles his feet awkwardly, stepping aside to let the other man retrieve his blade. Only when he retracts the sword, tucking it away on a strap over his shoulder, does Baekhyun sheath his own, retracting the beam and putting it back in its holster.

“So.” Chanyeol clears his throat. “You’re...the groundskeeper, then.” His gaze is...patronizing. That’s the best way Baekhyun can describe it. Chanyeol’s eyes scan Baekhyun’s form, repeatedly flicking back up to his face. The anger he’d felt before rekindles in his gut.

Baekhyun turns away from him, searching the rest of the temple to make sure everything is the way it should be, running his light scanner to search for anything out of order. 

His mind keeps circling back to what the investigator had said earlier, about a disturbance from one of the towers. He scans the surrounding area of the plateau, checking on each tower. “Uhm, hello?” Chanyeol’s voice is a low buzz in the background.

A light flashes at the northwest tower. Baekhyun takes off in that direction, taking his sword back out and reigniting it. “Hey! Where are you going?!” Baekhyun ignores the investigator’s confused cries, dashing through the closest hallway, and out the back door. 

The tower lies just up ahead, the humming grows louder. Baekhyun skids to a stop, his jaw dropping open. 

There’s a body at the foot of the tower, the blood splattered on the grass illuminated by the moon. 

“Fuck.” Baekhyun whispers, his blade falling limply to his side.

“Hey, what the hell, man-!” The investigator comes to a stop behind him. “Oh, God.” Baekhyun steps forward on shaky legs, dropping to a crouch to examine the body. He conjures a small ball of light, one of the light sconces on the temple behind them putting out. “What the hell happened to them?”

“Shut up.” Baekhyun snaps, bringing the light closer. The body’s chest is ripped to shreds, the insides pouring out the sides. The face is even worse, claw marks dragging down at every angle possible, the eyes pulverized into liquid. A shiver of horror runs down Baekhyun’s spine when he takes a closer look at the claw marks: they’re set in groups of four, vertical and parallel. “ _ Fuck _ .”

Baekhyun stands up, his knees wobbly. Chanyeol is standing a polite distance away, his eyes wide and his face white as a sheet. “This person clawed their own eyes out.” Baekhyun’s voice is hoarse.

The investigator opens his mouth, then closes it again. He pushes past Baekhyun to take a closer look for himself. 

Baekhyun steps away to lean against the wall of the temple. His head is reeling, the image of the marred body running through his mind. He fumbles to grab his phone out of his pocket, fingers shaking as he dials Kyungsoo’s phone number. It goes straight to voicemail, and Baekhyun curses, trying Jongdae instead. He picks up on the first ring.

“ _ Hey, buddy, where are you? Kibum tried cooking us this really gross-.” _

“Jongdae.” Baekhyun cuts him off. “There’s a body at the gateway, at the elven tower.”

The phone call crackles a bit. “ _ What? _ ”

“There’s a Ministry investigator here, too.” Baekhyun looks over at Chanyeol, who’s crouched down by the body. By the looks of it, he’s on the phone, too. “Just...It’s really bad, I don’t know what to do.”

The line is silent for a moment, and Baekhyun assumes he’s asking Minseok for advice. “Okay, I’ll come get you. Please be careful, Baek.” He hangs up then. Baekhyun closes his eyes, leaning his forehead on the stone walls to catch his breath. The sounds of footsteps break his silence.

“How long has it been since you’ve checked up on this place?” The investigator says, irritation pitching his voice higher than it’d been a few minutes ago. 

Baekhyun doesn’t want to tell the truth, that would definitely look bad for him. “It’s been a few days.”

Chanyeol presses his lips together, putting his hands on his hips. “ _ A few days _ ?” He says. “He’s been dead for at  _ least  _ a week. You left the largest gateway in the country unattended for a  _ whole fucking week _ ?” The investigator’s whole face is beet red, his hands gesticulating wildly.

Baekhyun stares, blinking for a moment, all of his repressed anger and indignation bubbling up to the surface all at once. “How is this my fucking fault? Did you even see what happened to him? I wouldn’t have been able to stop it if I’d been here!” He shouts back.

The investigator isn’t phased. “It’s  _ obviously  _ your fucking fault, this is your  _ job _ . That’s why you get training to deal with this kind of thing!” He waves back in the direction of the body behind him.

That throws Baekhyun for a loop. This man  _ clearly _ doesn’t know who he is, or he wouldn’t be saying such stupid things. Baekhyun opens his mouth to retaliate, when someone calls out, “Baekhyun!”

He reels around, frightened, his hand automatically reaching for his blade, Chanyeol doing the same.

“Baekhyun, are you okay?” It’s Jongdae, running towards him. Baekhyun relaxes, a flood of relief washing over him. Jongdae bends over, catching his breath with his hands on his knees. “It reeks.” He pinches his nose.

“I’m okay.” Baekhyun reassures him. Jongdae pulls him into a hug, and Baekhyun stills at the gesture. He awkwardly pats Jongdae’s back. “Really, I’m fine.”

Jongdae pats his shoulder one more time before they’re interrupted by the investigator clearing his throat. “Uhm, excuse me for interrupting, but we have a dead elf situation to deal with.” The two turn back to look at him.

“Oh, hello Chanyeol.” Jongdae steps away from Baekhyun, shaking himself off into full business mode. “So, what happened here?”

Baekhyun watches as Jongdae joins Chanyeol by the body, a spark of irritation flashing inside him. Of course Jongdae knows the investigator. He pads after them.

“...been here for at least a week. Something tore him up, can you tell if the tower is okay? His body might have been used to open the gateway.” Chanyeol speaks lowly to Jongdae, who looks up, considering the tower before them. 

Baekhyun steps in front of him. He knows this place better than anyone else. He moves around the body, placing a hand on the cool stone and closing his eyes. The palm of his hand glows warm as he scans the runes inscribed there. There were five spells etched into the rock, mostly to keep the spirits around the temple at bay, the other two locking the human world away from the elven world that lies just beyond this temple. Baekhyun’s hand pulsates around the rune. “The concealment spells are broken.” He says, turning to Jongdae and Chanyeol. The investigator’s eyes are glued to Baekhyun’s hand, his eyebrows furrowed in thought. “You said he was an elf?” Baekhyun gestures to the body, careful not to look at it again.

“Yes.” Chanyeol’s frown deepens.

Baekhyun hums, pressing his fingers into the grooves of the runes. He picks up traces of darkness there, remnants of magic. There’s something else in the rune. Baekhyun pulls his hand back, staring down at his fingers. Blood. He turns to Jongdae and Chanyeol. “Someone used his-,” he points down at the body. “blood to open the gateway.”

“It’s a sacrifice...” The investigator murmurs, staring down at the body.

“So…” Jongdae purses his lips together. “Someone kills this elf, uses his blood to unlock the seal that keeps elven land separate from humans...why?” He looks back up at Baekhyun, as if he holds all the answers.

“Dunno.” Baekhyun shrugs. He turns to Chanyeol, raising an eyebrow. “That’s your job, isn’t it? The one you were  _ trained  _ to do?”

The investigator stares at him, his ears burning red hot. He grits his teeth when he says, “Yes. It is.” He turns to Jongdae, nodding his head. “I’ll come back tomorrow with Minho so we can get a proper look around the place, thank you for coming.” And with that, he brushes the two off, leaning over the body to place preservation spells around it. When he finishes, he walks away briskly, leaving Baekhyun and Jongdae to watch him leave.

“Uhm, let’s get you out of here.” Jongdae says awkwardly. He takes Baekhyun’s arm, gently tugging him back out of the temple. He glances behind them at the body as they go, shivering.

“Stop looking at it.” Baekhyun says.

“I can’t… it just… I don’t know.” Jongdae shakes his head. “God, that’s horrible.” Baekhyun hums in agreement. He doesn’t want to think about it, but the image keeps flashing bright and glaring in his mind. They reach Baekhyun’s truck. Jongdae takes the keys from him, unlocking it. “So you met Chanyeol then. Did something else happen? He was kind of acting like a dick..” He asks once the truck is started up, heading out for the five minute drive back to the house.

“Yeah he broke into my temple unannounced, swordfought me, asked me if I was a human then blamed me for that elf being murdered.” Baekhyun says, the anger bubbling back up to cover the lingering shock. Then it breaks. “It’s not my fault.” Baekhyun’s voice cracks. “It’s not.”

“Of course it’s not.” Jongdae reaches a hand across the center console and places it on Baekhyun’s leg. He flinches at the gesture, but Jongdae isn’t phased. “To be honest… I’m happy you weren’t there when it happened, who knows what they would’ve done to you…” His voice wobbles, teetering with emotion. 

Baekhyun squirms uncomfortably in his seat. It’s not just from the sudden affection coming from his friend, though. He just feels… dirty. Like there’s something crawling over his skin, but every time he tries to get rid of it, there’s nothing there. He chooses not to respond, because all he wants right now is to get home, where he’s safe.

Minseok is waiting on the porch when they reach the house, his bottom lip worrying between his teeth. He leaps up out of his rocking chair the second the truck’s headlights flash onto the house. Jongdae’s partner races down the steps, meeting them at the truck to help Baekhyun out with a hand on his waist. Baekhyun is beginning to feel like a helpless toddler with the way his friends are treating him. He lets Minseok help him into his own house, nonetheless. 

Inside, it’s hot from Kibum’s cooking, the smell of cooked meat hanging everywhere. Baekhyun thinks back to the body, and dry heaves, pressing his forehead to the dining table. Minseok and Jongdae’s discussions are a buzz in the background. Baekhyun’s mind is still running on overtime to properly process the events of the night. The one thing that keeps coming back is, what if it is his fault? The investigator had been right, it technically was Baekhyun’s job to take care of the temple. A job that he’s been neglecting in favor of getting a peaceful night’s sleep.

A plate is set down in front of him. Baekhyun startles, looking up to see Kibum standing next to him in his ridiculous apron that reads “kiss the cook”. The nymph gives him a kind smile, taking the seat across from him. It’s an odd scene, juxtaposed with the snatches of conversation Baekhyun catches from his friends a few feet away, a jumble of Ministry terms and procedures that the groundskeeper can’t even begin to understand. Him and Kibum sit somewhere at the seams, directly affected and involved, but simultaneously  _ detached  _ from whatever business Jongdae and Minseok are supposed to conduct. 

Baekhyun looks down at his plate and sees rice and curry pork belly: his favorite dish. He gladly digs in. Him and Kibum eat in silence, Jongdae and Minseok eventually joining them, each sending worried glances at Baekhyun all throughout.

“Baek?” Minseok is waiting for Baekhyun in Kibum’s room when the groundskeeper gets out of the shower. He pats the space on the bed next to him.

Baekhyun pads forwards, toweling his hair dry. He sits next to Minseok, crossing his legs up on the bed. He has a feeling he knows where this conversation is going. 

“I want you to stay away from the temple tomorrow.” Minseok says.

Baekhyun exhales heavily. He wiggles his foot against the bed. “I know you do.”

“Baek, I know-,”

“No, Minseok, you don’t know.” Baekhyun snaps. He regrets it immediately when he sees the worry in his friend’s eyes. Baekhyun chews his lip. “Look. If you guys want to figure out what happened, I’m your best bet, and you  _ know  _ that, too.”

“Baekhyun.” Minseok says sternly. “I don’t make the laws, there’s nothing I can do about-,”

“ _ Fuck the laws! _ ” Baekhyun screams. “Fuck the damn laws, I am a grown fucking adult, Minseok, I’m twenty-four, not twelve.” He stops to catch his breath, his heart beating violently against his ribcage. Minseok just stares at him, in that calm, grown-up way that never fails to make Baekhyun furious. He doesn’t want this, this patient, watchful treatment, like Baekhyun was a toddler throwing a tantrum. All his life, all he’d ever wanted was for Minseok to yell right back at him.

Minseok wrings his hands in his lap, then hesitantly reaches out to Baekhyun, his hand cupping the younger man’s face tenderly. Baekhyun freezes, flinching under the touch. Minseok runs his thumb over the scars down Baekhyun’s cheek. “Baekhyunee.” The old nickname slips out so naturally, and Baekhyun’s heart squeezes with nostalgia. “Please. I just want you to be safe.” He pats Baekhyun’s cheek one more time before he hauls himself off the bed, leaving the room and shutting the bedroom door behind him. 

Baekhyun falls back onto the bed, staring at the ceiling for who knows how long. He runs his hands down his face, pressing the heels into his eyes until they go fuzzy. He closes his eyes, hoping that he’ll see Kyungsoo at work tomorrow. He doesn’t even bother considering skipping, not with so many Ministry workers running around in his proximity. 

He pulls the covers back, burrowing underneath, wrapping the blankets around himself tightly. He squeezes his penguin plush tightly, a little too tight maybe, its head bulging out over Baekhyun’s arms. He relaxes his grip, feeling guilty, and kisses the penguin’s head. At some point, Kibum joins him, curling himself all around Baekhyun’s back, tangling their legs together and falling into a deep sleep in an instant. Baekhyun sighs into the darkness. That night he doesn’t sleep, too scared to close his eyes and fall into the familiar nightmares that have haunted his dreams for years.

**__________________________________________**

When Baekhyun wakes up in the morning, Jongdae and Minseok are gone, leaving Kibum and Baekhyun alone in the house. There’s a note taped to the bedroom door. It’s from Minseok.

_ Sorry. _

_ Have a good day at work. _

_ Love,  _

_ Minseok _

Baekhyun crumples the letter up, but can’t bring himself to throw it away, depositing it on his desk instead. He pads to the kitchen, where Kibum is reheating leftovers from the night before. He takes a look around the kitchen. Lumi’s food bowl is still full from where he’d refilled it yesterday morning. Baekhyun frowns. She’s never been gone this long before. Even if she’s a spirit dog, and can definitely take care of herself, he still worries.

Kibum makes Baekhyun coffee to-go, patting him on the shoulder as a symbol of comfort, before he leaves for work.

Baekhyun steps out onto the porch, wrapped up in his long wool coat, holding his coffee cup close to keep himself warm. He walks down the creaky steps, rounding around to the back of the house to get a good look at the plateau visible just down the backroad.

From here, he can see the temple, sprawling over the whole length of the land there, the towers in each corner standing high above the early morning mist. Baekhyun can make out a few shapes dotted about, moving around the place. He assumes them to be Jongdae and Minseok, and perhaps Chanyeol. Baekhyun bristles at the memory of the investigator, and with that, he turns on his heel and trudges back to his truck, slamming its door shut violently. 

Jongin is there already when Baekhyun arrives at the coffee shop, sweeping the floors. “Hey hyung.” He calls out while working. He doesn’t look up as Baekhyun ties his apron around himself, going over the checklist of daily procedures. “How’s the housemate situation going?” Jongin stops for a moment, leaning on the broom. “Any luck with the stealing situation?”

Their conversation from the day before has long since left Baekhyun’s mind, so it takes him a few moments to catch up. “I forgot to bring it up. He made us dinner last night, though.”

“That’s nice.” Jongin resumes his work. “Kyungsoo called me this morning.”

Baekhyun stops what he was doing, turning to face Jongin. “Really? What did he say? Is he coming in today?”

Jongin nods, setting the broom aside. “He said he’s bringing the police officers, detectives, I mean, to talk to us sometime this week. He didn’t say why, though. Did he mention anything to you, hyung?” 

Baekhyun feels a spark of irritation that’s become familiar to him. “No. No he didn’t. He hasn’t called me in days.” Jongin is quiet after that, nodding and putting the broom away behind the counter. 

They start up the work day as usual. Customers start trickling in within the first hour, mostly local business owners coming to get their first coffee of the day from a place where they know it’ll always be good, warm enough to chase away the early morning gloom. Baekhyun can’t help the glances he throws out the shop window at the mountain, longing to be there where he knows Jongdae and Minseok are right now. 

It’s lunchtime when the shop’s elusive owner finally makes an appearance. Doh Kyungsoo walks right through the front door, with that confident, easygoing air about him he always has. Jongin lights up at the sight of their boss, nearly dropping the credit card of the customer he was serving. Baekhyun stills when he hears his name called from the espresso machine, whirling around.

Kyungsoo raises a bushy eyebrow, tilting his head in the direction of the coffee shop’s corner booth. Baekhyun quickly scrambles to untie his apron, hanging it up and following Kyungsoo to the booth. Jongin pouts after him dejectedly. 

When they reach the booth, Baekhyun nearly trips in shock. Lumi is there, curled under the table.

Kyungsoo sits down, indicating for Baekhyun to take the seat opposite of him. Baekhyun takes the seat stiffly. Across from him, his best friend folds his hands neatly on top of the table. “Did you take my fucking dog?” Baekhyun blurts out.

“Okay, first of all,” Kyungsoo closes his eyes, as he is often disposed to doing around Baekhyun. “Lumi doesn’t belong to anyone.” The dog in question nuzzles Baekhyun’s leg under the table, as if she’s asking for forgiveness. He begrudgingly reaches under the table to stroke behind her ears. “Second of all, she came to me.”

“Why?” Baekhyun frowns. 

“I was with two Ministry investigators, who wanted to talk to me about the whole gateway situation.” Kyungsoo eyes Baekhyun pointedly. The back of the groundskeeper’s neck burns. “She led us to a couple of stray spirits hanging around.”

“Spirits?” Baekhyun’s frown deepens.

Kyungsoo nods. “Just five miles out of the temple. So,” His gaze sharpens. “I sent one of them over to check on it.”

“Oh.” Baekhyun says lamely. His embarrassment is washed away quickly, replaced with anger. “You couldn’t have called me though? Of course I’m going to go make sure the fucking temple’s okay when Kibum’s freaking out about Minho, and Jongdae and Minseok show up.”

“I left a message with Jongin!” Kyungsoo says, throwing his hands up as if that’s a reasonable explanation for all of this. “What the hell else did you think I was talking about, Baekhyun? Why would I be talking to the human police?”

Baekhyun opens his mouth to retort, then quickly shuts it again. “You still could’ve called me.”

“Yeah, yeah, I could have.” Kyungsoo leans back in the booth, throwing an arm over the backrest. “I was kind of hoping you’d just go on as normal if I didn’t say anything. But then again, I can’t control what Jongdae and Minseok do, so. They didn’t even tell me they were coming.” He spreads his palms. “Here we are.”

Baekhyun thinks for a minute. In the end, he can’t stay mad at Kyungsoo for long. The younger man was the closest thing to family Baekhyun ever had. “Okay.” He gives in, his shoulder’s relaxing, slumping into the table. Under the table, Lumi nudges her way between Baekhyun’s knees, closing her eyes in content. Her tail thumps against the floor. 

“Anyways.” Kyungsoo’s tone drops back to the usual calm, deep familiar tone he uses around his friends. “Are you okay? I heard you and Park Chanyeol fought.” His large, doe eyes scan Baekhyun’s form for any signs of harm. “I’ll kill him if he hurt you…”

“I’m fine.” Baekhyun cracks his first smile of the day. “I beat him pretty good.”

“Really?” The other man quirks an amused eyebrow. “That’s not what  _ he  _ told me.” Baekhyun snorts. That sounds accurate. “Anyway, sorry about him. He’s a little sensitive. I would’ve preferred Minho to be the one to check up, but he was too much of a chicken to venture so close to Kibum.”

“Of course.” Baekhyun rolls his eyes. “So, what’s going to happen today?” He gives Kyungsoo his best hopeful puppy-dog eyes.

“The four of them are out investigating the temple right now.” Kyungsoo says easily. He’s much more forthcoming in person. 

“Are they going to reseal the gateway?”

Kyungsoo purses his lips. “Not right now. Minho says they’ll need to take the case to Seoul and present it to the Ministry, and they don’t want to tamper with anything if they decide to move further.”

Baekhyun nods. That was more information than he’d been expecting, so he’s satisfied for now. He glances down under the table at Lumi, whose eyes are half lidded, happy to be back with Baekhyun. “You’re not to go out there until they’re finished investigating, though.” Kyungsoo adds. Baekhyun’s head snaps back up. “They specifically said you weren’t allowed in the  _ temple _ , though.” Kyungsoo’s eyes float off somewhere above Baekhyun’s head, staring out the windows. 

Baekhyun stares at Kyungsoo, speechless. Was he saying what he thinks he is? “You mean-.”

“I didn’t say anything.” Kyungsoo continues to stare out the window, but Baekhyun catches the minute, almost unnoticeable way his pupil flicks back down at him out of the corner of his eye. 

And that’s all the permission Baekhyun needs.

**__________________________________________**

As soon as Jongin once again offers to close up shop, Baekhyun takes off in his truck, this time with Lumi, who wags her tail eagerly all the way, as if she knows what they’re doing. Kyungsoo let her stay in the shop, keeping her company in the corner booth while Jongin and Baekhyun were working. 

When he reaches the fork in the road, he takes the side that leads around the backside of the plateau, instead of the side that leads to the house. It’s even darker this way, leading directly up into the forest, no houses dotting the road to light the way. No lights for Baekhyun to draw on, only the truck lighting the way for him. 

Baekhyun parks his truck a distance below the plateau, letting Lumi out on the other side. He takes the pen out from its holster, igniting the light beam, using it as a light and a precaution in case he runs into any wayward spirits.

The side of the mountain leading up to the plateau is steep, the hike up tiring for Baekhyun, but easy for Lumi, who keeps her nose to the ground, ears perked up and alert. As they get closer to the plateau, Baekhyun can hear muffled voices over the hum of the temple. He creeps closer, trying to quiet his breathing. 

Suddenly, Lumi barks next to him.

Baekhyun startles, swinging around to where the dog is snarling at something in the darkness of the forest. He moves his light beam, trying to find the source of Lumi’s distress. Then he’s knocked off his feet, the beam smacked out of his hands, falling somewhere nearby, out of reach. Baekhyun scrambles to stand back up, but a heavy weight settles on his chest, his vision going black. “Get the fuck off me!” Baekhyun grunts, trying to conjure light, but the weight presses harder into him, pinning his wrists down, and the wisps of light in his hands fizzle out into nothing. Lumi’s barks grow louder, trying to fend off the creature on top of Baekhyun, but in vain.

Something grips around Baekhyun’s throat, and he chokes, gasping for air. The grip tightens, Baekhyun’s brain starting to go fuzzy around the edges. Just as he’s about to pass out, the weight is suddenly swept off him in a rush of blue light.

The air rushes back into Baekhyun’s lungs, making him lightheaded. He reaches for his blade, leaping back onto his feet, his head instantly going dizzy. Lumi is right next to him, light swirling around her as she snarls protectively. 

A few feet in front of him, is a tall man with a sword in hand, swathed in flames, grappling with a monstrous, shadowy figure. The man was evidently losing the battle, the shadows gripping his limbs in a tight lock. 

Baekhyun recovers quickly, absorbing the light radiating from Lumi, charging it in his palm and releasing it in a bright, blinding beam, hitting the shadow directly.

The shadow lets out a blood curdling scream before vanishing in a puff of smoke. Baekhyun lowers his arm, panting to try and catch his breath. Next to him, Lumi relaxes. Baekhyun breathes a sigh of relief. He’s safe now. 

The other man turns to look at Baekhyun, who tenses before he sees who it is. 

“Oh. It’s you.” Chanyeol scowls. The sword bathed in fire by his side goes out, retracting into a bracelet around the investigator’s wrist. “You’re not supposed to be here.” He steps closer to Baekhyun. From here, the groundskeeper can see the anger clear on his face.

“You’re welcome?” Baekhyun arches an eyebrow, gesturing vaguely to where the shadow had been. He can see a few bruises on the investigator’s knuckles from wrestling with the shadowy figure.

Chanyeol doesn’t respond, his eyes burning for what reason, Baekhyun can’t decipher. “That was a spirit. Got out when the tower was breached, which I’m supposed to be investigating right now instead of saving the useless groundskeeper from a dumb ghost.”

Baekhyun gapes at the man before him in shock. “I just saved  _ you _ from a ‘dumb ghost’, what the hell is your problem?”

The investigator’s eyes rove over Baekhyun’s face. The air around them is thick with their mutual frustration. “Thanks.” He mutters, so quietly Baekhyun barely catches it. Baekhyun nods in response, turning away from the other man.

Lumi trots forwards, sniffing the ground around them, the trees, and plants around them. “What’s she doing?” Chanyeol shifts on his feet, leaves crunching beneath them. 

“She’s making sure there aren’t more spirits around.” Baekhyun says. Lumi snuffles, moving away from the brush and sitting back on her haunches. They were safe, for now. “Have you guys… found anything more in your investigations?” He asks to fill the silence. For some reason, Chanyeol still lingers around, his hands shoved into the pockets of the hoodie he’d worn the day before, too. 

“Not that it’s any of your business.” The investigator huffs. “But, no. We haven’t.”

Baekhyun nods with a sense of satisfaction. That’s exactly what he wanted to hear. “You’ll be needing me, then, I guess.”

“What?” Chanyeol’s head snaps up. 

Baekhyun crosses his arms, trying his best to sound confident. “I’m the only one who can figure this all out.” He can see the gears turning in Chanyeol’s brain. Baekhyun thinks back to the night before, when he used the light to scan the tower, how Chanyeol had watched him. The same thought seems to click in the investigator’s mind, because his eyebrows unknit slowly, clarity dawning on his features.

“Fine.” The investigator says. “I’ll have to tell Jongdae and Minseok about this. ” He crosses his arms, as if trying to intimidate Baekhyun into backing down, but the groundskeeper doesn’t waver in his resolve.

“Go ahead.” Baekhyun mirrors his stance, but inside, he’s nervous to hear his friends’ reactions. 

“Fine.” Chanyeol says again, taking a step back up the hill to the plateau. “I will. You didn’t have to come here and do all that just to feel included, kind of a dick move.” 

“See you tomorrow!” Baekhyun calls after him. He watches the tall, lanky man lumber away. Once he’s out of sight, the groundskeeper bends over, his hands on his knees, reeling. That was more than he’d thought would happen when Kyungsoo gave him his permission to come here. 

“What do you think, Lumi?” He asks the dog. She’s sitting on a tree root nearby, her tail swishing idly. She cocks her head, tongue lolling out. Baekhyun grins, reaching out to ruffle her ears. “Yeah, I think he’s a dickhead, too. It’s okay, though. We can do this without his help.” The spirit dog nips at his hand in agreement. She walks in front of him on the way back to the truck, keeping on the lookout for more stray spirits.

Kibum is already asleep when Baekhyun makes his way back to the house, all the lights off. He quickly hops in the shower, takes some melatonin, and burrows under the covers, careful to not wake the nymph, to avoid any conversation with Jongdae and Minseok whenever they get back. Baekhyun won’t let Minseok take this away from him; he wants part in the investigation to sate the guilt he feels from the brutal death of the elf, and to give the Ministry a chance to see him as something other than a liability. Maybe a chance to be free. 

He could deal with that tomorrow. For now, he could bask in his small victory before his brain forces him into sleep.

**__________________________________________**

Park Chanyeol walks into the coffee shop the next day, Kyungsoo and Choi Minho trailing in behind him. 

Baekhyun nearly drops the ceramic mug he’d been about to serve. 

Kyungsoo approaches the counter, greeting Jongin briefly. “Baekhyun. Office.”

The groundskeeper gulps, setting the mug down on the counter, wiping his hands off and heading through the back door. Kyungsoo’s office is across the hall to the back storage room, a clean, professional space. The two investigators are waiting for him inside, Kyungsoo himself sitting at his desk chair. 

“Hello, Minho hyung. It’s been a while.” Baekhyun greets him first, bowing politely. 

Minho dips his head in acknowledgement. “Hello.” His eye twitches subtly. “How’s Kibum?”

Baekhyun had been expecting that question the minute Minho stepped into the coffee shop. “He’s fine.” He says. His loyalty lies with the nymph, who would want Minho to suffer as much as possible.

“Good, good.” Minho nods curtly. “I’m sure you’ve already met my apprentice, Chanyeol, then?” He gestures to the lanky man standing off to the side. He gives Baekhyun an almost imperceptible nod, as if he doesn’t even want to acknowledge Baekhyun.

_ Apprentice _ . Baekhyun rolls the word around in his head. Now  _ that  _ explains a lot.

Baekhyun takes a seat then, ignoring Chanyeol, who leans against the corner of the walls, crossing his arms and rolling his eyes. It’s the first time Baekhyun’s seeing him during the daytime, and his appearance in a plain white shirt and jeans is a bit jarring in comparison to the image of him in that oversized black hoodie Baekhyun has set in his mind.

“Now let’s get to business.” Kyungsoo says as soon as Baekhyun is seated. “Baekhyun.” He turns to the groundskeeper. “You’ll be allowed to work on this investigation, but only on certain terms that we’ve already agreed to.” His gaze sweeps over the two investigators in the room. Baekhyun gulps nervously. 

“I’d just like to make it clear that you’ll only be involved in Ministry affairs for the duration of this case.” Minho chimes in, turning in his seat to face Baekhyun, his expression serious. “And you’ll be supervised by either me or Chanyeol at all times when working. We have all authority to restrain you if needed.”

Baekhyun’s insides churn uncomfortably at that. He can’t help the massive weight of disappointment that settles over him, slumping his shoulders down further with every word Minho says, with the formality of a stranger, and not a friend of so many years. Baekhyun chances a look at Kyungsoo, who only tightens the line of his mouth, his eyes swimming with pity. “Okay.” Baekhyun agrees weakly, only because he knows he has no other choice. The groundskeeper glances out of the corner of his eye at Chanyeol, curious to see how much he knows about his situation. The investigator is frowning, lips pursed. He’s clearly confused. Baekhyun doesn’t know how he should feel about that.

“Great, glad we got that out of the way.” Minho says, as if they were agreeing on a favorite food, or if the weather outside was nice. He claps his hands together, as enthusiastic as Baekhyun always remembered him to be. “We don’t have much right now, other than what you already deciphered from the tower the other day. So, I thought it’d be a good idea for us to just dive right on in there!” He speaks animatedly, as if he’s trying to breathe life back into the room after he sucked it out. “Why don’t we throw out a few theories, get the ball rolling?”

Kyungsoo opens a small notebook on the desk, flipping through a few pages. Baekhyun watches with bated breath. “Okay. So from what Jongdae and Minseok have told me, all the gateways at the different locations that have been opened so far have one thing in common…” He reaches the right page. “Ah, here it is. Minseok said they’re all coming from the elven towers. The sealing spells at each of the towers have been broken, but only one has actually succeeded in opening the elven border. But, the gateway here is the only case of someone being murdered to open it.” He looks back up from the book, making eye contact with Baekhyun briefly. “That’s all we have so far.” 

Baekhyun chews his lip, thinking. He doesn’t know much about elvish politics, but he does know there are laws keeping them separate from the rest of the magical world, and there have been scattered incidents in the past few decades of small insurgencies against the Ministry, little, massively ineffective attempts at breaking down the gateways. Baekhyun recalls the runes on the tower, the two spells for the tower had two different purposes: one to keep the elves in their own territory, and the other to keep outsiders  _ out  _ of it. Both of the spells were broken. “Both of the spells on the tower were broken.” Baekhyun says. All eyes turn to him. “Whoever performed the sacrifice is trying to cover up their motive to do so. There’s no way for us to tell if they were trying to get in, or out. I think.” He stares down at his lap, feeling suddenly self-conscious.

“Hmm, that’s good work, Baekhyun.” Minho says, giving him an enthusiastic thumbs up. “So, do we agree that the opening of the gateways are all connected?” Kyungsoo and Baekhyun both nod their heads. Out of the corner of his eye, Baekhyun can see that Chanyeol is still, his foot tapping a frantic rhythm on the ground. “Chanyeol?” Minho directs his gaze to the taller investigator. “Do you have a different theory?”

Baekhyun turns fully in his chair to face him. The tall man uncrosses his arms before speaking. “I think it’s pretty obvious that someone was trying to go  _ into _ elf territory, why else would they sacrifice an elf to enter? Whoever did this is not an elf.” His eyes flick down to meet Baekhyun’s gaze, dark with vitriol. Baekhyun’s face burns. It’s clear Chanyeol still blames him for the elf’s murder.

“I mean,” Baekhyun cuts in. “It’s likely that it could have been two elves trying to open the gateways, and once they realized what it took to release their own spells, they turned against each other. It’s not like that hasn’t happened before, just not recently. Remember the Busan uprising?” He flicks his gaze to Kyungsoo, hoping he remembers the nights they’d spend together as kids, reading Kyungsoo’s school books to Baekhyun while his grandfather was asleep.

Chanyeol blinks, his face blank. “That’s  _ ridiculous _ . The only elves that live outside of the border are exiles and ambassadors.” 

Baekhyun’s face burns. “I was just trying to say we shouldn’t rule out any possibilities-.”

“It’s not a possibility.” Chanyeol deadpans. Baekhyun opens his mouth to retaliate, but Minho interrupts him.

“Well, that’s a good theory, Chanyeol, and yours too, Baekhyun, but we still have to investigate more to know for sure.” Minho says. That only seems to aggravate the taller man even more, his protruding ears burning bright red. 

“Yeah, but-,” He starts.

“Later, Chanyeol.” Minho says, this time more stern. Chanyeol closes his mouth, his cheeks red. 

Baekhyun watches on curiously. Clearly there was more to this situation with the investigator that he didn’t know, just as there were things about himself that Chanyeol wasn’t aware of. 

“So.” Kyungsoo says hesitantly, glancing between Minho and Chanyeol. “We can go back later tonight? I can drive with Baekhyun.” Baekhyun resists the urge to roll his eyes. He feels like a teenager all over again, with all this constant supervision. 

“Sounds good! We’ll meet you there.” Minho smiles his most charming smile, the smile Baekhyun used to see constantly when Kibum was around. He stands from his chair, and Baekhyun moves to do the same. “It was nice to see you again, Baek.” Minho sticks out his hand for the groundskeeper to shake. 

“Yes. Nice to see you too.” Baekhyun smiles, shaking his hand and letting go quickly. The other man bids Kyungsoo goodbye too, and makes to leave the room, Chanyeol following close behind. As soon as the door closes, Baekhyun lets out a loud whine. “Kyungsoo, what the hell? I don’t need a goddamn chaperone.”

Kyungsoo holds his hands up in defense. “Hey, that’s not my call to make. Minho’s much higher up now than when you last saw him.”

“Is that so?” Baekhyun folds his arms, rolling his eyes. “I can see why Kibum calls him ‘the asshole’ now. That Park Chanyeol guy is a pain in the ass, too.”

“Chanyeol’s just passionate.” Kyungsoo says, getting up from the desk. “He’s new, too. Kind of idealistic.”

“I can tell.” Baekhyun snorts. “I’m sticking with you, tonight. I don’t want to be  _ anywhere _ near that guy unless he starts insulting me again.”

“I’m sure you can handle it.” Kyungsoo pats his shoulder. “Now get back to work. Poor Jongin can’t keep doing everything himself.”

**__________________________________________**

Kyungsoo and Baekhyun leave the coffee shop when the sun starts to set. He has to assure Jongin that he’ll spend more time with him the next day to chase the younger boy’s pout away. He locks up, grumbling to himself about Kyungsoo playing favorites, but lets them go nonetheless. 

He finds Lumi in the back seat of the truck, poking her head through the center console, panting eagerly. “Did you bring her?” Baekhyun asks Kyungsoo.

“She must have followed you to work this morning.” Kyungsoo shrugs. “You know how spirit dogs are.” 

Lumi licks Baekhyun’s ear in response, nipping his lobe gently. Baekhyun scratches her ears as an apology for not thinking to bring her along this morning.

Baekhyun drives them over to the temple, letting Kyungsoo play whatever music he wants. It’s nice to be like this again, just him and his best friend driving together, something they hadn’t done in years. Baekhyun’s heart swells with intense nostalgia, all the memories of them driving through the summer rain at midnight flashing before his eyes. The way Kyungsoo laughs when Baekhyun brings up an old memory tells him the other man feels the same.

Minho and Chanyeol were already at the temple when Baekhyun and Kyungsoo arrived, discussing something quietly with their heads bent together. “Are Jongdae and Minseok coming?” Baekhyun asks Minho once they reach the gate.

“Nope.” He says. “They said they’re staying at the house to take care of Kibum.” Minho side eyes Baekhyun then, and the groundskeeper understands the implication immediately. 

They enter the temple, shrouded in darkness. The moon is still new, barely visible over the twin peaks of the mountains. “Baekhyun can you give us some light?” Minho asks.

Baekhyun casts out his senses, searching for any source of light inside the temple, but comes up empty. Beside him, Lumi lights up in response, ready to give her energy to Baekhyun.

Suddenly, a spark of light ignites from next to him. Baekhyun startles, ready to absorb it, but it’s just Chanyeol, who stands there with a small, blue flame in his palm. He gives Baekhyun an infuriatingly smug look, and the groundskeeper turns away, scowling. A fire witch. Of course. Lumi growls, as if she’s annoyed too.

“Thanks, Chanyeol.” Minho says. He leads them down a dark and crumbling hallway, oblivious to the hum buzzing through the air.

Baekhyun hates walking in the inside structures of the temple. The hum is always stronger, as if it couldn’t escape the walls that surrounded it. He looks around to see if anyone else is affected by it like he is. Kyungsoo and Minho appear unbothered. Baekhyun glances over at Chanyeol. He looks...disconcerted, and the groundskeeper wonders if he’s affected by the hum as much as he is. 

Walking out of the hallway into the chilly night air comes as a relief to Baekhyun, the hum of the temple diffused in the open space of the plateau. That relief is short-lived, as Baekhyun spots the body of the mangled elf, set at the foot of the tower where they’d found it. He wrinkles his nose, stepping forward to approach it. He’s about to start scanning the body when Minho reaches out to stop him. “Wait. We have to catch a sight-sharing spell.”

“Why?” Baekhyun pulls away from the body, frowning. 

“Just to keep you honest. It’ll only show your thoughts in the present. It’ll give us a better understanding of how your abilities work with this sort of thing.” Minho’s smile is friendly, as it always is, but it still makes Baekhyun’s blood boil. He pulls his bag off his shoulder, digging around and pulling out a vial filled with a wispy, pink powder. “Chanyeol.” He beckons his apprentice closer, and Baekhyun steps away, feeling apprehensive. “You remember how to use the spell like I taught you?”

“Yeah, of course I do.” Chanyeol takes the vial, turning to Baekhyun.

“Wait, so you’re just going to let your  _ apprentice _ poke around in my head?” Baekhyun looks at Minho. That’s exactly the last thing he wants. “Can’t you do it instead?” At least he knows Minho. The older man wouldn’t be upset by the things he’d see in Baekhyun’s mind, because he already understands what all the little stray thoughts bouncing around would mean. 

“It’s a learning experience.” Minho says apologetically. “I’m not just an investigator, I’m a teacher, too.”

“It’s not that big of a deal.” Chanyeol grumbles. “It’ll only be for a few minutes, right?”

Baekhyun looks at Kyungsoo, who just shrugs, hands stuffed in his coat pockets. “I don’t know how to use that spell.”

The groundskeeper huffs. He turns back to face Chanyeol, who looks just as uncomfortable as Baekhyun does. “Let’s get this over with then.” Baekhyun nods. He takes note of the way Chanyeol still can’t meet his eyes.

The investigator uncorks the vial, pouring a small amount of the powder into his palm. He dips two fingers into the powder, swiping it over his own forehead, then reaches towards Baekhyun, who notes his hesitation to touch his face. He raises an eyebrow at Chanyeol, who bites his lip, pressing the powder to Baekhyun’s forehead, pulling away quickly. He murmurs an incantation under his breath in a language Baekhyun doesn’t understand, and the powder starts to glow. 

Baekhyun’s skin tingles where the powder is, and suddenly, he feels it. A second presence in his head. It throws him off balance for a moment, blinking to clear away the feeling. 

“You should get moving.” Chanyeol says. “It’ll only last for five minutes.”

Baekhyun nods, dropping down into a crouch. Lumi settles in beside him, sitting at the head of the body to watch over the groundskeeper. “Can you lend me your light?” He asks stiffly. Chanyeol joins him on the ground, reigniting the flame in his hand, bringing it closer to Baekhyun. “Thanks.” Baekhyun absorbs the light, and his palm starts to glow. He closes his eyes, and starts to scan the injuries on the body. 

He starts on the face, hovering his light right above the slashes on the elf’s eyes. Baekhyun feels remnants of darkness, the same he’d felt the other day when he’d scanned the tower’s runes. Baekhyun takes a deep breath, bracing himself for what was about to happen, then dips his finger into the empty eye socket. 

The images hit Baekhyun with the strength of a freight train, and he feels Chanyeol recoil inside his mind. 

One of the tenets of Baekhyun’s powers is the ability to-  _ literally _ \- shed light on the history of objects; inanimate, or animate, and even living beings. His friends always expressed their jealousy over him having such an ability, but Baekhyun thought of it as anything  _ but  _ a blessing. Every time he’s used this power, it’s something awful, something horrific. Which is exactly what he sees now.

The elf’s hands are his own, clawing at his own face, swathed in shadows. His voice screams at the pain, and the horror. His face is on fire, and he claws at it, sharpened nails digging deep into supple flesh, desperately trying to put the fire out. 

Baekhyun feels Chanyeol’s presence in his brain recoil in horror. He narrows his focus, trying to see past the hands in front of him. 

The scene is nearly pitch black. He catches flashes of the mountains in the background, and the tower, its runes glowing bright red. Baekhyun moves his hand from the eyes, to the gaping cavity in the elf’s chest. 

The image changes, and a shadowy figure stands over the elf, dipping wispy tendrils into the carnage of his remains. The figure itself is fuzzy, but Baekhyun can tell it’s definitely a person, but something is wrong. Its features are warped, distorted so only the whites of its eyes are visible. The figure pulls back, blood covering its shadowy hand, and it  _ grins _ , showing sharpened, stark white teeth.

Baekhyun pulls back abruptly, scrambling away from the body. His mind races, the image of the elf tearing his own eyes out quickly morphing into Baekhyun’s own hands, much smaller than they are now, scratching his own eye out. 

“ _ Baekhyun _ ?” Kyungsoo calls out, dropping to the ground and shaking the groundskeeper’s shoulder. “Hyung, are you okay?” The honorific slips out. Kyungsoo only used it when he was worried. Beside him, Lumi presses her head into Baekhyun’s lap, radiating warmth in an attempt to comfort the groundskeeper.

Baekhyun shakes his head, willing the images away. Belatedly, he remembers that Chanyeol is still in his mind. 

The investigator is staring at him in horror, his eyes blown wide, his jaw slack. Baekhyun looks away, feeling like he’s been violated. 

Kyungsoo helps him stand, his hand on Baekhyun’s back to steady him. Baekhyun takes a moment to recover, his head reeling. Once he catches his breath, he turns to Minho, steeling his gaze. “The elf was attacked by the same thing, the same  _ person _ , that tortured me.”

Minho presses his lips together. “Chanyeol, what did you see?” Baekhyun flinches when he feels Chanyeol poking around in his head. Hasn’t it been five minutes yet?

“The elf was tortured.” Chanyeol confirms, but Baekhyun hears the warble in his voice, like he’s still in shock from what he saw. His presence is frightened, retreating to the farthest corner of Baekhyun’s brain, slowly ebbing away. The investigator side-eyes Baekhyun, like he’s trying to put the pieces of a puzzle together, to try to figure him out.

Minho rubs his chin, thinking. “So that confirms it then, right?” He looks over at Baekhyun. “The Darkling is still alive.” Kyungsoo’s grip tightens on Baekhyun’s shoulder. 

“Yes.” Baekhyun whispers. The four of them fall into silence, the hum hanging thickly all around them, as heavy as humidity. Lumi nuzzles into his leg. 

“Sorry, who’s the Darkling?” Chanyeol speaks up, his voice sounding small, so different from the loud, boisterous Chanyeol Baekhyun has come to hate.

“Well.” Kyungsoo’s hand pauses on Baekhyun’s shoulder. “We really don’t know much about him, other than he uses dark magic, and that he died off almost two decades ago. Or-,” Baekhyun feels Kyungsoo’s knuckles twitch uncomfortably. “At least he was supposed to have died off.”

“The Darkling case was closed years ago.” Minho says. “We just stopped looking for him at some point, which was clearly a mistake.” Baekhyun catches the way he glances between Baekhyun and the elf. “The most prominent theory about him, though, was that he was an elf, and his presence was connected with the Busan uprisings. So, Baekhyun’s theory from earlier is starting to sound the most plausible.”

Baekhyun nods absently. His head is still swimming, and it takes him longer than normal to understand the words coming out of Minho’s mouth. Thankfully, he’s saved from speaking again when Kyungsoo says, “That would make sense. He definitely has unfinished business in the human world.”

“But you guys don’t know if this ‘Darkling’ guy is actually an elf or not, right?” Chanyeol cuts in, his voice already raising. Baekhyun is grateful that his presence is completely gone from his mind, so he doesn’t have to feel the investigator’s ceaseless anger. “Is there any way we can figure out which side of the border the tower was opened from?”

They all turn to look at Baekhyun. He sighs. This would all be so much easier if  _ only _ Minho and Kyungsoo were here. Better yet, just Kyungsoo. No Minho. “No. That’s not how it works.” 

“Then what’s the point of you, then, huh?” Chanyeol spits. Baekhyun’s head snaps up, his mind rolling with fifty emotions at once. He opens his mouth to respond, but Kyungsoo intervenes.

“Chanyeol, enough.” He says, his voice stern, dipping into his lower octave. “I think we should get Baekhyun home, we can continue this conversation there.”

Baekhyun notices the way Minho visibly tenses. “Okay.” He nods his head curtly. “We’ll see you there.”

This time, Baekhyun lets Kyungsoo handle him like a toddler, leading him back to the truck and taking his keys from him. Baekhyun leans his head against the window of the truck, Lumi nestled between his legs under the seat, glowing warm. This scene is starting to feel all too familiar, like it keeps happening again and again on repeat. Like Baekhyun’s suffering can never really end. A horror movie on its hundredth showing to a sadistic audience. The images won’t go away. The elf’s hands. Baekhyun’s hands. The smile of the devil standing right in front of him.

Baekhyun and Kyungsoo reach the house before Minho and Chanyeol. Minseok and Jongdae are sitting out on the porch on the swing. They both jump out of their seats at the sight of the truck coming up the driveway. 

Baekhyun allows himself to be carried inside, dumping himself down on the living room couch. Lumi hops up next to him, laying down across Baekhyun’s lap. He hears Minseok yelling in the kitchen. 

“ _ What the hell were you thinking, Kyungsoo? Letting him go out there like that?!” _

Kibum pads in from the hallway, clad in his pajamas. “Yah, what the hell is going on? I’m trying to sleep.”

“Sorry.” Baekhyun apologizes. He scoots over on the couch, ignoring Lumi’s whines of protest, making room for Kibum to come and sit down. “We were out at the temple to look at the scene from the other day.”

“Hmmf.” Kibum nestles in close to the groundskeeper, perching his head on his shoulder. 

“Oh, by the way.” Baekhyun says carefully. “The investigators are coming over. They should be in in a minute.”

Kibum looks up at Baekhyun, a warning in his eyes. “Who is  _ they _ ?”

“It’s, uhm. It’s Minho.”

Kibum is quiet for minute, making Baekhyun nervous. Just when he’s about to say something to ease the tension, he hears the front door open, swinging closed with a loud thud. Baekhyun and Kibum share a look, the nymph closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, as if he’s resigning to his fate. 

Minho and Chanyeol walk through the hallway, passing the living room. Minho stops in his tracks when he sees Kibum. Baekhyun feels the nymph tensing next to him. Chanyeol looks confused, as he always seems to be, glancing between his mentor and Baekhyun and Kibum sitting on the couch. 

“I’m going to go join the others in the kitchen.” Baekhyun says, patting Kibum’s arm and standing up, padding away from the scene awkwardly. Lumi leaps off the couch to follow him. Baekhyun glances over his head at the living room, to make sure Kibum is okay by himself. Minho is still standing, but he’s inside the room now, the nymph stretched out on the couch. He sighs, relieved. He’d expected a worse reaction from Kibum. Maybe he doesn’t actually hate Minho as much as he says he does.

In the kitchen, he finds Jongdae, Minseok, and Kyungsoo all sat together at the dining table, all with their notebooks out, comparing their findings. The hushed whispers come to a stop when they notice Baekhyun entering the room. “Oh, hey, Baek, Chanyeol,” Jongdae greets, startling Baekhyun. He hadn’t seen Chanyeol follow him to the kitchen. It’s only slightly disconcerting to have the man who was in his brain only half an hour ago standing in his house. Baekhyun shivers uncomfortably. He feels like this invasion of his privacy is never going to end. “Come sit down!” Jongdae pulls a chair out for the groundskeeper to sit down. Chanyeol follows, taking one of the seats opposite Baekhyun, next to Minseok. Lumi settles under Baekhyun’s chair, resting her chin on her paws.

“How are you holding up?” Jongdae asks quietly, nudging his and Baekhyun’s knees together under the table. “Kyungsoo told us everything.”

“I’m okay.” Baekhyun says, because that’s what he’s used to saying. 

“We’re happy you’re safe.” Minseok says from across the table. He runs a hand through his hair. “Even if we’ll have to jump through a million hoops to explain this to the Ministry.”

“Of course that’s what you’re worried about right now.” Kyungsoo mutters under his breath. Baekhyun glances between his friends, feeling uneasy. Kyungsoo and Minseok have never seen eye to eye, especially in matters like this, that involved their respective jobs. Or, more poignantly, how their jobs intersect with  _ Baekhyun _ .

“If I can interrupt.” Chanyeol says quietly. Everyone turns to look at him. His eyes are flickering uncertainly between the group at the table. “But, I’d like to know what this whole-,” He looks at Baekhyun and grimaces, as if the sight of him was caustic. “Baekhyun situation is. Because we’ll have to testify in court about what happened if we want to reopen the Darkling case. And, he’ll need to explain _ why  _ exactly he neglected his duties as the groundskeeper of the temple.” He sounds so sure of himself when he speaks, very much the arrogant, self-important investigator Baekhyun fought that day at the temple. It irritates him, his skin burning with the way Chanyeol looks at him like he’s a wild, rabid dog that needs to be sedated. 

“You see, there’s a set of laws-,” Minseok starts to speak, but Baekhyun holds a hand up. He wants to speak for himself, for once in his life.

He stares Chanyeol down, unwavering, relishing the way he makes the investigator shift uncomfortably in his seat, the way he makes that confident front shatter with a single look. “There’s a set of laws that keep me here, in Concord Valley. I can’t leave, and I’m bound by the law to take care of the temple.” Baekhyun can’t help the weird, twisted tingle of satisfaction he feels watching Chanyeol’s stern resolve start to crumble. “I’m also not allowed to get bound  _ or  _ married, interact with magical beings outside of the valley, including any witches that are not involved in keeping me here, or use my powers beyond use for protection of the temple.” Baekhyun starts speaking faster, getting louder, as all his built up anger and frustration bubbles to the surface, lashing out against the man before him. The lights in the kitchen flicker. “So I’m so fucking sorry that I don’t want to check up on the temple once and a while, I’m sorry for wanting to be selfish, and just go home and get some sleep. I’m sorry for wanting some fucking sense of control over my own life.” By the time he finishes speaking, his entire body is on fire, and the lights from the chandelier above the dining table abruptly go out with a pop, tossing the room into darkness.

No one speaks. Under the table, Lumi whines, sensing Baekhyun’s distress. Baekhyun breathes heavily, trying to calm down. His hands are shaking. 

And they’re glowing.

“ _ Fuck _ . I’m sorry.” Baekhyun says quietly, and all of a sudden he feels so small. He relaxes, and the lights from his hands release and return back into the chandelier. The light comes back slowly, and Baekhyun can’t bring himself to look at the people around the table. 

God, he’s such a fool.

“I see.” a voice says curtly across the table. Baekhyun looks up, and sees Chanyeol, looking him directly in the eye for the first time since they met, and it shakes Baekhyun to his core. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t informed.” His words are apologetic, but his tone is anything but, acridity sitting just at the edges of his words, like he wants to say something more, but is afraid of stirring up trouble with his superiors. Baekhyun feels the anger flush back into him like a sharp inhale of breath, making him dizzy. Before he can speak again, Minseok interrupts him.

“It’s okay.” Minseok says, clearing his throat and shaking off the tension hanging around the table. “It’s not common knowledge, and for good reason.” He directs his gaze towards Baekhyun, threatening him into silence.

“It’s to keep him safe.” Jongdae chimes in, running a hand on Baekhyun’s thigh. His touch is comforting, even if their words only make the groundskeeper more frustrated. 

Chanyeol nods tersely, finally averting his gaze from Baekhyun’s eyes. The groundskeeper doesn’t have it in him to speak up for himself, to further justify his actions. Instead, he feels like a cornered animal. Like he has to allow himself to be devoured, Like it’s not his place to fight back. “So…” The investigator says, clearing his throat, effectively suppressing his irritation. “Where do we go from here?”

“Well.” Kyungsoo says, his voice weak. “You’ll have to go to Seoul and present the case to the Ministry, obviously. I think what we have is enough to say definitively that the Darkling is still alive.” 

“Minho said he’d drive back tomorrow with the body to start the official presentation to the Ministry.” Chanyeol adds. He fiddles with his fingers on the table. “And I’m staying behind to make sure the ghosts don’t act up. Or, to make sure the-, the uh, the Darkling doesn’t come back.”. 

“So. Just so we’re all on the same page.” Minseok says after a brief silence. “We’re all agreeing that the Darkling opened the gateway to open the border between elven territory and the human world, correct?” The table nods. “Now, we don’t have all the evidence just yet, but Minho’s planning on positing Baekhyun’s theory? That the Darkling opened the border from the elven side.” The table nods again, and Baekhyun can’t help but notice how dejected Chanyeol looks. “Remember that it’s  _ just  _ a theory. The Ministry will still expect us to investigate all possible situations.” He directs that last bit to Chanyeol, who only blinks in response. “That’s settled then.” Minseok stands from the table, the rest of them follow suit.

Jongdae helps Baekhyun stand up, for which he is grateful. His vision swims when he stands, all the blood rushing directly to his brain. “We’ll wrap things up with Minho, are you okay to go to bed now?”

“Yeah.” Baekhyun says, and he hates how small his voice sounds, how vulnerable he is in this moment. “G’night, Jongdae, Minseok.” Minseok claps a hand on his shoulder, squeezing before letting go and backing out of the kitchen. Jongdae follows, giving Baekhyun one last smile before he disappears into the hallway. 

Only Chanyeol remains. Baekhyun clears his throat in an attempt to get him to leave, but he just stands there, his arms folded and his foot tapping an erratic rhythm into the floorboards. “I am sorry for not knowing. Genuinely. But my ignorance doesn’t excuse your actions. Responsibility is still responsibility, whether you like it or not.” The investigator speaks, his voice quiet, but with a threatening edge to it. Like he wants to make sure his message is clear without alerting the others in the house to their conversation. He dips his head in a bow before he turns on his feet and brushes past Baekhyun, and out of the kitchen. 

Baekhyun stares after him, conflicted. He doesn’t know how to feel about Minho’s apprentice. On one hand, his arrogance and self-righteousness were obnoxious, irritating to a point that made Baekhyun’s blood boil. Ever interaction they’ve had has been hostile. On the other hand, he had the humility to apologize to Baekhyun after he gained more insight into why Baekhyun was the way he was. On yet  _ another  _ hand, the apology was directed towards his lack of knowledge, not about his derisiveness towards the groundskeeper. Either way, Baekhyun definitely wasn’t in a mental state to properly process all of that, and he turns to head to his Kibum’s bedroom, Lumi in tow.

He showers, taking his time on account of him still being a little out of it. The same questions run through his mind on repeat:  _ Am I a bad person? Do I deserve to be here? _ Baekhyun knees wobble in the shower, and he takes a moment to press his forehead to the wall. Those questions haven’t plagued his mind in years, but this one, stupid night, brings everything crashing back down around him. 

They were the same questions that used to swim around his head every night, as a kid, trudging through the darkness, holding the lantern, crying from exhaustion. A gravelly, worn voice would snap at him “ _ quit your whining, selfish little parasite. it’s all your fault _ ”. 

The mirror is fogged up when he steps out. Baekhyun stares at himself, the image of the Darkling flashing through his mind. He brings a hand up to trace the marks on his face. There are four, parallel, long scars down his left cheek, one large, longer one from his forehead on the left side, slashing through his left eye, down his nose, and ending just above the right side of his jawline. On the right side of his head is a burn, from where his own hand, glowing with too much energy, had gripped his head, trying to pull his own hair out. As a result, his earlobe is a molten shape, the skin around it red and raised. He has an undercut, because he can’t grow hair in that one spot. The real icing on the cake is his left eye, a glassy white orb from when he’d tried to scratch it out. Baekhyun shudders, closing his eyes to stop the memories.

Just then, the bedroom door opens and Kibum comes inside, flopping on his bed. Baekhyun shakes himself out of his thoughts, throwing his clothes on quickly and walking out of the bathroom. He climbs into bed, pulling the covers off the nymph that he’d buried himself in and grabs his penguin plush, hugging him close to relieve the pain in his chest. “So.” Baekhyun says carefully. “How was Minho?” 

“Annoying.” Kibum grumbles, scooting closer and burying himself into Baekhyun’s shoulder. “He doesn’t want to break the bond, and he had the  _ audacity  _ to ask me to move back to Seoul with him. What a dickhead.”

“Mmm.” Baekhyun hums, running his hands down Kibum’s back comfortingly. “I agree. He’s been annoying. Him  _ and  _ his apprentice.”

“Blegh.” The nymph murmurs. They’re quiet for a moment, and Lumi takes that opportunity to jump on the bed, curling up on Baekhyun’s other side. “Are you going to be okay, with all of this, uh,  _ stuff _ , happening? Do you need a sleep spell?”

“That would be great, actually.” Baekhyun sighs, closing his eyes and leaning closer to the nymph. Kibum hums, singing softly in his native language, his fingers caressing Baekhyun’s hair, brushing through it. Like that, Baekhyun falls into a dreamless sleep.

**__________________________________________**

**Ten Years Earlier**

Summertime in Concord Valley was hot and humid, the nights raging with heat lightning that lit up the whole sky in a brilliant, blue blaze. On their nights off from learning about the temple, Baekhyun and Kyungsoo would venture into the forest to catch lightning bugs, or take their bikes to downtown Huiju to get ice cream. On the weekends, Jongdae, Minseok and Minho made the journey up the mountain from the other wide of the valley to visit. Some of Baekhyun’s fondest memories were of him and Kyungsoo sneaking all of them into the temple, bringing lanterns for Baekhyun to make little light shows on the temple’s walls.

Every year in early September, though, Kyungsoo would pack up all of his belongings, take all of his books, clothes, and a box full of spell ingredients, and head off to witch school in Seoul. Every year, Jongdae’s parents would drive him over, picking up Minseok and Minho along the way, and take Kyungsoo with them. And every year, Baekhyun would stand on the porch of the house, Kyungsoo’s grandpa with a hand on his shoulder, waving goodbye to his best friend, promising to write to him while he’s gone.

And every year, Baekhyun would be by himself, for the long hours of the day, and the night, when no one was around to give him sleep spells to chase the nightmares away. Kyungsoo’s grandfather always said the scarred boy needed to “grow up and get used to it”, and would refuse to help when a young Baekhyun came crying into his room in the middle of the night.

Baekhyun would sit at the window every morning, watching the forest outside, waiting for something to happen to him, something to take him away from his life of solitude.

On account of his identity, Baekhyun was homeschooled. His teacher was a kind woman named Miss Bae. She was a witch, but preferred to stay away from magical affairs, exactly the reason why old Mr. Do hired her. His school hours with Miss. Bae made his loneliness much more bearable. Baekhyun revered her, and she became the closest thing to a mother he’d ever had. 

His friends came home for the holidays, but the two weeks he spent with them for Christmas were never enough to last him through the rest of the months until June. Baekhyun was lonely. And miserable. His lessons with Miss. Bae were only three hours long, leaving him alone with Kyungsoo’s grandfather for the rest of his days. Daytime was long, filled with learning the ways of the temple and how to care for it, haunted by the persistent hum that hung over the entire plateau, his nights sleepless and filled with nightmares.

One night, Baekhyun found himself running away, dashing through the forests behind the house, a lantern in hand. His nightmares had gotten to be too much, so much so that he hadn’t slept in two days. 

Fourteen year old Baekhyun stumbles through the woods until he comes to the river where he collapses, splashing water on his face to keep himself awake. His reflection ripples in the water, flashing and rushing with the current. He still flinches whenever he sees himself, a reflex he wouldn’t grow out of for years. 

The water is loud, roaring in his ears even louder than the hum of the temple. Baekhyun backs away from the water, following the direction of the current downstream. If the water’s this loud, there must be a waterfall nearby.

It doesn’t take long to find it, and Baekhyun finds himself standing at the top of a mountain, the waterfall falling all the way down into the gorge below. He walks to the edge, letting his toes hang just over the edge of the cliff. It’s a long way down to the bottom, and if Baekhyun were to fall, he would most definitely die. A shiver races up his spine as he considers the fall. It would be painless wouldn’t it? 

Baekhyun pulls out the locket hanging around his neck, clicking it open. Inside are the only pictures he has of his parents. One with all three of them, tiny Baekhyun sat on his father’s knee, the second one of just his parents, pressed together and in love. 

His cheeks wet as his tears fall. He can’t help it. Not when he doesn’t even remember anything about them. 

Baekhyun closes his eyes, gripping the locket tight, and lets himself fall forwards.

He’s weightless. He’s numb.

He falls for about two seconds before a rush of water envelopes his whole body, and he feels himself lurch upwards. A sharp pain shocks him in the back of his head.

For a second Baekhyun thinks he’s dead, and he panics. What has he done? Where was he? 

Could he go back?

And all of a sudden his body slams back down onto rock, the water diffuses around him, and the air rushes back into his lungs.

Baekhyun gasps for breath, scrambling to sit up, his head reeling. He looks around wildly, and finds that he’s back up on the cliff that he’d jumped from. His heart pounds wildly in his chest as he catches his breath. He’s alive. He jumped, but somehow he was back here. Alive. Baekhyun drops his head into his hands, unable to stop the sobs that force their way out of him.

“Are you alright?” A small voice comes from next to him.

Baekhyun jumps out of his skin, leaping to his feet in fright, looking around wildly. The pain in his head makes his ears ring with the motion. “Who’s there?” He can’t see anything through the darkness. The lantern must have fallen off the cliff with him.

“Down here.” The water from the river splashes, the spray misting Baekhyun’s face. He jumps, whirling around to face the water. 

Even in the dark, the head of bright blue locks peeking over the riverbank is unmistakable. Baekhyun blinks, staring at the form. “Uhm, hi there.”

“Hello.” The blue head says.

Baekhyun stares at it-, them? He doesn’t know quite what he’s looking at. “Uh. What are you? Were you…” Baekhyun glances at the water rushing around the form, rolling off as if it were...a part of it. “Did you save me?” Baekhyun has heard stories of nymphs from Kyungsoo, when they would stay up at night under the covers of the younger boy’s bed, reading his school textbooks by the light from Baekhyun’s hand. He knows that there are water nymphs, nymphs that are wound around bodies of water.

“Yes.” The...nymph…? hauls themself out of the water, the river rolling off a body that Baekhyun immediately sees is male. He averts his eyes. “Are you okay?”

“Uh, yeah, I think so.” Baekhyun backs away from the nymph, now standing in front of him. They’re about the same height, and the nymph looks like he’s also the same age, but Baekhyun knows that’s probably not true. “Thanks. I guess.” 

“You’re bleeding.” The nymph says, frowning. He steps forward, reaching out to touch Baekhyun’s head. Baekhyun backs away. “Come. Let me help you.” The nymph grabs his arm, his grip surprisingly strong, and drags him down the riverbank. Baekhyun lets himself be carried, still unsure of what was happening right now. He lets himself be pushed down into a seated position. He averts his eyes from the nymph, uncomfortable with his naked form. 

“I’m Kibum.” The nymph says, dipping a hand in the rushing river, bringing the water up to Baekhyun’s head. “I live in the part of the river that stretches through this mountain.” Baekhyun doesn’t say anything, preoccupied with the tingling at the back of his head where he’d banged into the cliff side. The pain slowly ebbs away, the stinging ache fading away into nothing. 

“H-how’d you do that?” 

“I’m a nymph.” Kibum shrugs, giving Baekhyun a radiant smile. And the rest is history. Meeting Kibum gave Baekhyun a reason to push through all the lonely months of the years, sneaking off into the forest every night after dinner, in the afternoons, and in between lessons with Miss. Bae. For once in his life, Baekhyun felt stability.

That is, until his friends found out about Kibum.


	3. take my head

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> baekhyun starts to understand

_ “Early one morning just as the sun was rising, _

_ I heard a maiden call from the valley below. _

_ ‘Oh don’t deceive me, oh never leave me.’” _

__ Patrick Ness,  _ The Knife of Never Letting Go _

**__________________________________________**

Minseok and Jongdae’s bedroom is empty when Baekhyun wakes up in the morning. He sighs, his shoulders slumping, exhausted despite the twelve hours of sleep he’d gotten. He was definitely late for work. Late by two hours to be exact. He woke up to a long text paragraph from Kyungsoo, letting him know that he was staying in town while their friends went to Seoul, and excusing Baekhyun from coming in to work today. Baekhyun heaves a sigh of relief, tempted to fall back into bed, but then thinks of Jongin making coffee and taking orders all by himself, and hauls himself out of bed.

Baekhyun pads away from the guest bedroom, down the hallway and into the kitchen. He notices that the dog door is still open slightly, the edges caught on the splintered wood outside, and he assumes Lumi has gone out to hunt for food. 

In the fridge he finds a tupperware of duck fried rice, with a sticky note on top.

_ We’ll miss you, Baekhyunee~. I made you breakfast to last you the rest of the week, so don’t even think about replacing me with that Jongin boy. <3 _

_ Love, _

_ Jongdae. _

Baekhyun smiles Jongdae’s thoughtfulness despite himself, unwrapping the tupperware and sticking it in the microwave to heat up, putting on a pot of coffee in the meantime. 

He feels a strange sense of emptiness going through his morning routine. After all the excitement of the past few days, the thought of going back to work and checking up on the temple afterwards with no wayward spirits, no elves, nothing to make his heart pound, is...dismal to say the least. Baekhyun finds himself spacing out, his ears not hearing the sound of the microwave timer. He stares out the kitchen window at the forest behind the house, covered in early morning mist, soft gold rays of light shining through the cloud cover.

Just like that, Baekhyun’s back to being the exile he’s always been.

Jongin greets him enthusiastically when he opens the doors to the coffee shop. “Hyung! I didn’t think you’d be coming today.” He lays a friendly hand on Baekhyun’s shoulder as soon as he’s within arms reach.

“I’m here. Sorry for abandoning you this week.” Baekhyun gives him his best smile. “I swear I won’t leave you behind here anymore.”

“You better not.” Jongin pouts, bringing Baekhyun closer so he can rest his chin on the groundskeeper’s head. Baekhyun lets Jongin hold him for a moment, relishing the comfort of a normal person. A normal person who thinks he fell into a tiger enclosure as a child. 

The day starts as normal, the usual flow of customers trickling in at noon, Baekhyun is silently grateful he missed the morning hour rush. Baekhyun gets back into the routine of making lattes, hidden behind the espresso machine.

Kyungsoo comes in around one, working on his checkbook in the corner booth of the shop. Baekhyun catches him sending glances towards him every so often, making sure he’s doing okay. The groundskeeper rolls his eyes at him, but he doesn’t feel annoyed. 

Baekhyun and Jongin take turns taking their lunch breaks sitting in the corner booth with Kyungsoo. Jongin takes his sweet time, always getting lost in his storytelling. Baekhyun watches them in amusement, preparing a cappuccino and hot chocolate for an elderly woman and her granddaughter. As he’s placing the cups on the counter and calling the name, he nearly drops them when he catches a glance outside.

Chanyeol is standing outside of the coffee shop, hands stuffed into that black oversized hoodie he always wears. The woman and her granddaughter pick up their drinks, giving Baekhyun the time to school his surprised expression into neutrality. 

When he looks back out the window Chanyeol motions with his head for him to come outside. 

Baekhyun scowls, gesturing to the customers around him.

Chanyeol frowns, shrugging exaggeratedly and stepping away from the store.

Baekhyun glances over at Kyungsoo and Jongin still in the corner booth. Kyungsoo is too absorbed in whatever Jongin was saying to pay any attention to him. 

Eventually- finally-, Jongin comes back, apologizing to Baekhyun for taking too long and immediately picking up the pace. Baekhyun takes a peek outside the windows. Chanyeol is still there, standing across the street from the shop in front of the deli, eating a sandwich. 

The rest of the work day has Baekhyun on edge. His focus is torn between Chanyeol meandering around the street outside, to Kyungsoo in the corner booth and making sure he doesn’t see Chanyeol, and Jongin rattling off coffee orders to him. He eyes the clock while pouring steamed milk into a mug, spilling over the top onto his shirt. Baekhyun curses, reeling away from the coffee. Thankfully, no one notices his little slip up, and he shakes his head, letting go of the tension he feels.

When the day ends, Baekhyun simultaneously feels relieved and anxious, his nerves reigniting when he remembers the dreaded investigator is outside waiting for him. He says his good nights to Jongin and Kyungsoo, the latter staying behind to help Jongin lock up the shop. He gives Baekhyun a firm kick to the shins when the groundskeeper teases him about it.

Baekhyun shoves his hands in his coat pockets, leaving the pair to lock up. He steps around the corner, away from the train tracks. The sun is down already, and the street lamps lining the street have been lit, providing a nice balmy glow over everything. Baekhyun takes note of all the streetlamps in case he needs to call on their light to use against Chanyeol. 

He has no idea what this meeting is about, but he won’t put anything past the investigator. 

Baekhyun finds Chanyeol sitting on a bench outside the history center, staring down at his phone and jiggling his leg. The groundskeeper clears his throat, and the investigator startles, dropping his phone in his lap. Baekhyun raises an eyebrow at him.

Chanyeol’s surprise quickly turns into a scowl, his thin eyebrows furrowing in what Baekhyun is starting to think of as his preferred expression when interacting with him. “What took you so long?”

“Sorry I have a real job.” Baekhyun grits his teeth, taking a seat on the bench across from the investigator awkwardly. Chanyeol huffs, his nose twitching. “So. What do you want?”

Chanyeol averts his eyes, staring somewhere off into the distance. Baekhyun glances at his watch, just to be an asshole. It seems to work, because Chanyeol speaks, in a quick rush of air. “I need your help.”

Baekhyun blinks. Now he’s the one in shock. Chanyeol looks back at him, his expression pained, the tips of his protruding ears bright red. “I see.” Is all Baekhyun manages to say. He waits for the investigator to say something more, but he just...sit there, awkwardly shifting his weight around on the bench. “Not going to elaborate? Okay, well, I’m exhausted and I still need to check up on the  _ temple  _ so…” He gets up to leave.

“Okay, okay. Just...sit down. Please.” Baekhyun sits. It feels satisfying to hear him say ‘please’. “I…” Chanyeol’s whole face is now a furious shade of red. “I have to find evidence that all  _ this _ -,” he gestures vaguely around them. “-, isn’t coming from the elven side of the border. And...I can’t do any of that by myself.”

Baekhyun sits in silence for a moment. It’s hard to wrap his head around having a polite, professional conversation with Chanyeol, the feeling is so foreign to him. The gears in Baekhyun’s brain work overtime trying to come up with the least offensive response possible. “Look, Chanyeol. I’ve already looked at everything. There’s nothing else we can do without official guidance from the Ministry. There’s nothing more  _ I  _ can do.” And that’s the truth. Baekhyun’s already done his job. As much as he wants to be more involved in this whole process, if he helps Chanyeol with...whatever it is he thinks he’s doing, it could mean consequences on him from the Ministry.

Chanyeol bites his lip, scratching the back of his neck. “Listen. I have some, erm,  _ connections _ , that I can use to help figure this all out.” There’s a pause between them. “Connections that Minho doesn’t know about.”

“Oh.” is all Baekhyun manages to say. That puts him in an even  _ more  _ precarious situation. “I...- I can’t really give you a yes or no here without more information.”

“Well that’s all I can tell you.” The irritation immediately seeps back into Chanyeol’s voice. Back to square one.

Baekhyun closes his eyes for a second, trying to contain his temper. “Then I can’t help you. I can’t just risk doing something like this, which is  _ much  _ worse than me not checking up on the temple for a few days, by the way.” That point makes Chanyeol’s bottom lip disappear, his frown folding down over it. “Since you were so upset about that, I really don’t understand why you’re coming to me now.”

Chanyeol’s nostrils flare more with each word that comes out of Baekhyun’s mouth. The groundskeeper sits back as he watches Chanyeol close his eyes, clearly going through the same dilemma Baekhyun had just a moment ago, trying to make his response less scathing. “I… I promise you I’ll make sure you won’t face any consequences from the Ministry.” He pauses for a second, wrinkling his nose. “I’ll take full responsibility for anything that happens in my investigation.”

Baekhyun opens his mouth, then closes it. He’s completely shocked into silence, and, for once, he has no comeback. All he manages to say is a subdued “why?”. That’s all he can think. Why? Why now? And is Baekhyun obligated to trust him now, so suddenly, after everything else that’s happened between them?

“Just…” Chanyeol sighs, his eyebrows twitching in irritation. “Please trust me on this. I wouldn’t be begging  _ you  _ of all people if I didn’t think I could do this and do it  _ properly _ .”

Baekhyun nods at that. It tracks well with what little knowledge he has of Chanyeol, the way he goes out of his way to avoid contact with him, averting his eyes. “I get that.” He bites his lip. “But, this seems kind of risky for me to get involved in, since you’re an apprentice and all.” He doesn’t mean for that last comment to sound rude, but he knows that it does. It’s just the truth. Baekhyun would feel much more comfortable if someone experienced was there to guide him, to assure Baekhyun that he’ll be doing good, that he’ll be safe.

“I swear I know what I’m doing, I-I don’t know how else to explain this to you. This is really important to me, I wouldn’t stake my whole career on nothing.” The investigator says, blinking rapidly, staring at the floor. “And...when this is all over we won’t ever have to see each other again. I promise. If that makes you feel any better.”

Baekhyun hums, pleased by the prospect of never seeing Chanyeol again. He makes a mental note of that for later, placing it at the top of the ‘pros’ section of his pros and cons list. “I’ll have to think about it, obviously.”

“I know you said you need time to think about it.” Chanyeol says. “I could come back later tomorrow? I have to meet with my contacts tomorrow, anyways, so you have time.” He scratches the back of his neck when he says ‘contacts’, and a red flag goes up in Baekhyun’s brain. 

“Tomorrow is fine.” Is all Baekhyun says, and he leaves it at that, pushing up from the bench and leaving the courtyard.

It’s now two in the morning and Baekhyun is still awake. His window is open, the breeze blowing in from outside. Normally, the sound of the cicadas would help Baekhyun sleep. But not now. 

He’s conflicted, to say the least.

After hours of lying awake in bed, going over his options, weighing every possible outcome, he still has nothing. 

On one hand, he could say no to Chanyeol, go back to living his life like normal, and let the professionals handle the case. No trouble for him, and no mess. No risk of getting caught and punished by the Ministry. Some deep, twisted part of him wants to take that path out of pure spite, to see Chanyeol receive punishment from the Ministry, a kind of retribution for the way he’s treated Baekhyun. 

But on the other hand, Chanyeol seemed... desperate. He’d offered to protect Baekhyun from punishment by the Ministry, without hesitation. Baekhyun knows that if their roles were reversed, he wouldn’t make that offer unless he felt that he had no other choice. 

There’s also that tiny part of him, lurking in the corner of his mind, that wants justice. Justice for himself. If there’s any chance that he’ll be able to take down the Darkling, he’s willing to take it. He  _ aches  _ to take it. 

Baekhyun closes his eyes, rubbing the heels of his palms over them. 

He wants to break the rules. He wants to defy his own fate, for once in his life. All his little rebellions-, well, not really rebellions, just shirking his responsibilities, really-, weren’t enough.

There’s a tempest churning with Byun Baekhyun, and it’s ready to break free.

**__________________________________________**

Kyungsoo knows something.

He arrives at the coffee shop at the same time as Baekhyun and Jongin. “Good morning, Baekhyun.” The younger man says, raising a bushy eyebrow. Baekhyun has known him long enough to know that look. 

“Morning, Kyungsoo.” Baekhyun holds the door open for him and Jongin to enter, walking in after them. Kyungsoo sets about taking inventory for the day, instructing Jongin to go to the back storage and bring out a new stock of Sumatra roast beans. He complains with a pout. Baekhyun moves to help him, but Kyungsoo stops him with a hand on his shoulder.

Kyungsoo looks over him, making sure Jongin’s out of earshot. “Minho, Jongdae, and Minseok started the appeal trial process yesterday.”

“Oh?” A funny feeling swirls around in Baekhyun’s gut. 

“Minseok called me last night, he said that ⅔ of the court is ready to go ahead with the investigation.” Kyungsoo’s gaze wavers from Baekhyun’s. “He said they’re planning to invoke the Peace clause to investigate every elf clan in the country.” 

Baekhyun blinks. He didn’t know what he expected, but that definitely was not it. “All of them? Is that legal?”

“Yup.” Kyungsoo says. Baekhyun can see the flash of annoyance pass over his expression. “It is if they have a reasonable cause, which they do.”

“That’s…” Baekhyun stops when Jongin comes back into the room, dumping the giant bag of beans next to the roaster with a long whine. “Great, you can tell me about it on lunch break.”

“Hyung!” Jongin folds his arms. “I was gonna take first lunch break.” He juts his lower lip out, always unafraid to use his cute charms. 

“You’ll get it tomorrow.” Kyungsoo reassures him, throwing Baekhyun a pointed glance out of the corner of his eye. And with that, the work day starts. Baekhyun keeps an eye out for Chanyeol, despite the investigator telling him they wouldn’t be meeting again until nighttime. He can’t help the excited rush of anticipation that flashes in his gut every time he thinks about the day to come. It feels like when he and Kyungsoo used to sneak out at night, when Mr. Do was fast asleep, that same giddy feeling of breaking the rules.

Come lunchtime Baekhyun makes himself a tomato turkey sandwich, taking it to the corner booth where he sits across from Kyungsoo, who has a mess of paperwork spread out on the booth table in front of him. “So, the trial.”

“Hello to you too, Baekhyun, how’s your day so far?” Kyungsoo says, the corner of his lip quirked in a knowing grin. Baekhyun rolls his eyes, kicking him under the table. “Minho will be put on lead informant for the investigation, but, ultimately, Minister Im will be in charge.”

“Is he the rich one?” Baekhyun asks around a mouthful of sandwich. He managed to piece together the Ministry politics from Kyungsoo’s ramblings; who was in charge of what, which departments annoyed Kyungsoo the most, and which officials were most definitely corrupt.

“Well that’s one way to put it.” Kyungsoo says. “It’s going to be brutal. He was the one who led the investigation into the Darkling when we were kids, you know?”

Baekhyun nods. He didn’t know that. He’s not sure what it means in the scheme of whatever him and Chanyeol are going to be doing, and his stomach pings in anxiety. If anything, this new information prompts Baekhyun to ask the question that’d been tossing and turning inside him all last night. “Kyungsoo?” The younger man hums in acknowledgement, flipping through his paperwork. “Do you trust Chanyeol?”

Kyungsoo looks up, closing the packet he was looking at. “Why do you ask?” His voice is neutral, but Baekhyun catches the subtle twitch of his eyebrow. 

“Just asking, since he’s still here.” Baekhyun shrugs, trying his best to sound casual. He thinks that Kyungsoo understands what this conversation is about, but he can’t be sure yet. “I wanna know if I have to lock my doors at night, y’know?”

Kyungsoo chuckles, his eyes scrunching up into little crescents, a sight that Baekhyun knows is rare, and he takes a moment to appreciate it. The other man folds his hands over the paperwork, leaning forward into Baekhyun’s space. “Yes, you can trust Chanyeol with this. He knows what he’s doing.”

There it is. Kyungsoo  _ does  _ know. “So...are you helping too?” Baekhyun asks.

“Not officially.” Kyungsoo throws a glance over at Jongin behind the counter. “But I am hiring someone else to cover for any absences you’ll be having.”

“Who said I was going to actually do it?” Baekhyun wrinkles his nose at him. 

Kyungsoo doesn’t respond to that, rifling through the stack of papers and pulling out a folder. “Here’s my personal file on the Darkling. It has all the possible suspects that the Ministry had on file, where they lived, and where all the victims were found.”

Baekhyun looks down at the file. “Kyungsoo…” He makes no move to pick it up. “Thank you.”

Kyungsoo flushes, as he always does under any kind of praise. “Yeah, yeah, whatever.” 

The groundskeeper flips through the file. It’s thick, closer to a binder than anything else. “Does this…” Baekhyun asks, tentative. “Have…”

“I took the pictures out.” Kyungsoo says, understanding. “The reports and the files are still there, though, but they’re at the back.” 

Baekhyun nods, pressing his lips into a thin line. “Thank you, again, Kyungsoo, I really mean it.” And he does. Kyungsoo has always been there for him over the years, helping him with his groundskeeper duties, emotional support, and anything else he needs. He cares; without caring about his Ministry duties more. Baekhyun can’t help but think of Jongdae and Minseok, then.

“Just be careful, Hyung.” Kyungsoo says, taking off his glasses and leaning back in his seat. He closes his eyes. “Now get back to work.”

Baekhyun feels relieved for the rest of the work day. Knowing his best friend has his back lifts a weight off his shoulders he hadn’t even noticed was there. 

The sun sets. The streetlamps come on, glowing on the dark street outside. Customers start to trickle out, the crowd thinning out into the students studying for their college entrance exams, plugged into the coffee shop’s wifi.

He chats with Jongin, leaning against the coffee counter, Kyungsoo joining them at the front of the bar. Baekhyun idly listens in on their conversation, nodding along, staring out the windows. The feeling of being so excited about doing  _ something _ is so foreign to him, that it’s hard to listen to what his friends are saying. 

Just as they’re locking up for the night, Chanyeol comes running around the corner of the building, nearly bowling Baekhyun over. He reels back, ready to fight, until he sees who it is. Chanyeol jumps away from Baekhyun in fright, nearly tripping over his own feet. “S-sorry.”

“Chanyeol?” Kyungsoo says, appearing from behind Baekhyun. 

“Sorry I’m late.” The investigator bends over, panting. He looks like he ran all the way here from...wherever it was he came from. “I got caught up with uhm…” Chanyeol trails off, catching his breath and leaning back against the wall of the coffee shop. 

“What’s going on?” Jongin says from the side, glancing between his friends and the newcomer. 

“Nothing.” Kyungsoo says before Chanyeol can speak. “He’s a friend from out of town.”

“Oh, hello, I’m Jongin.” The tanned boy says, sticking a hand out to Chanyeol like the absolute sweetheart he is.

“Hey. I’m Chanyeol.” Chanyeol says, awkwardly taking the proffered hand. Baekhyun snorts to himself at the scene.

“We should get going.” Kyungsoo interrupts, hooking an arm through Jongin’s. “See you, Baekhyun.” Baekhyun waves them goodbye, watching them walk together down the street, a skip in Jongin’s step.

“So-.“

“I’ll help you-.”

Baekhyun and Chanyeol speak at the same time. 

Chanyeol’s eyes widen. “Oh. Well. That’s great.”

“Yeah.” Baekhyun says, shuffling his feet. An awkward silence stretches between them. The cicadas hum in the trees. “So..” 

“Can we talk at your house?” Chanyeol asks.

Baekhyun furrows his eyebrows. “Aren’t you staying at the inn here? We can just talk there and I’ll drive home after.”

“Well I planned to have us meet my contacts at the temple tomorrow, and your house is closer.” Chanyeol folds his arms.

“You can drive over in the morning.” Baekhyun folds his arms, mirroring his stance. “No offense but I don’t feel comfortable with you staying in my house.”

Chanyeol’s jaw slackens, that fire in his eyes Baekhyun has become so familiar with igniting. “Are you serious? This isn’t about  _ you _ , or anything I’ve  _ unintentionally  _ done to make you uncomfortable. It’s not that big of a fucking deal.”

“I’m not  _ saying  _ anything against you!” Baekhyun sputters. He takes a step back, weary. This situation is quickly spiraling out of control. “I just think it’d be more convenient if you drove yourself over tomorrow.”

“Well I-.” Chanyeol starts, then stops, closing his mouth, his whole face on fire, burning a bright red. He looks away, kicking the ground. “I can’t drive.”

Baekhyun stares. Well. He wasn’t expecting  _ that _ . “Oh.” He says. “Why didn’t you just say that? I would have driven you, I’m not a monster.”

Chanyeol is quiet, biting the inside of his cheek. “Okay. Sorry, I guess.”

“That’s the spirit.” Baekhyun gives him a small smile, trying his best to diffuse the tension. If they’re going to be working together, there can’t be any of this misunderstanding and miscommunication. And if they’re going to work together, Chanyeol needs to get his temper in check. But he doesn’t say that out loud. 

The walk to Baekhyun’s truck is awkward, the drive home even more so. Chanyeol presses himself to the door of the truck, staring out the window at the countryside outside.

Lumi greets them when Baekhyun unlocks the door, wagging her tail in excitement. “Look who decided to come home.” Baekhyun giggles, scratching her behind the ears. She licks his face all over, and the groundskeeper lets it happen. Behind him, Chanyeol clears his throat. “Sorry.” 

It feels…awkward. Baekhyun all of a sudden doesn’t know what to do with himself, what to say, what to  _ do _ . He feels exactly like he did all those years ago when he met Kyungsoo’s new friends for the first time. 

“Hey, Kibum.” Baekhyun clears his throat when he leads Chanyeol into the kitchen, where the nymph is making dinner. Lumi pads after them, immediately taking her seat under Baekhyun’s chair.

“Hey, Baek-,” He turns around. “Oh. Who’s this?”

“Park Chanyeol.” The investigator speaks up from behind Baekhyun. “I’m Minho’s apprentice.”

Kibum gives him a long, sour look, then turns his gaze back to Baekhyun. “Why is he here.” Baekhyun notices Chanyeol take a step backwards when Kibum waves the knife in his hand.

“We’re working.” Baekhyun gestures to the dining table for Chanyeol to take a seat. “And he’s...staying the night.” 

“I won’t be a bother, Kibum-ssi.” Chanyeol dips his head to the nymph. “I can sleep on the couch.” 

Baekhyun looks at the investigator in surprise at the same time Kibum says, “oh, yes you most definitely will be.” Chanyeol flushes, folding in on himself in his seat. “And it’s  _ Hyung _ to you.” The nymph places two bowls at the dining table, turning his sharp, watchful eye on the investigator. “You’re lucky I made extra. Let me get you a bowl.” Chanyeol visibly perks up at that, and Kibum gives Baekhyun a cheeky wink.

“So…” Chanyeol says, glancing at Baekhyun out of the corner of his eye.

“Eat first.” Kibum sets a bowl down in front of Chanyeol, then takes the seat next to Baekhyun. The groundskeeper feeds small bits of beef to Lumi under the table. Baekhyun sends occasional glances at Chanyeol, who looks so muted in this setting, quietly eating his stew, his legs crossed, complimenting Kibum on his cooking. It’s an odd sight for him, and one that he refuses to let replace the image of the temperamental, fiery Chanyeol he has in his mind.

After they finish eating, Baekhyun helps Kibum clean up all the dishes and cookware, leaving Chanyeol at the dining table with Lumi. The groundskeeper pouts when he sees the spirit dog lay her head in Chanyeol’s lap. “Traitor.” He mumbles under his breath.

Baekhyun pulls Kibum aside after all the dishes have been stacked back in the cupboards, glancing back at Chanyeol. “Hey, so we’re gonna be talking about, like, a lot of work related stuff if you just wanna go to bed.”

“I’m not leaving you there with him.” Kibum snorts. “He’s from the Ministry, you can’t trust him.”

Baekhyun pats Kibum on the waist. “Kyungsoo trusts him, though. He’s an asshole, but he’s the only shot I have to find the Darkling.”

“Hm.” Kibum narrows his eyes at him. “If he says anything rude to you tonight I swear I’ll drown him in his sleep.”

“Yeah yeah sure you will.”

And with that, Baekhyun and Kibum take their seats back at the dining table. Lumi immediately pads back over to Baekhyun, curling herself around his legs and nuzzling into his lap. “Okay, now we get to business.” Baekhyun says in his most professional voice possible. He’s never been in this kind of situation, and it’s a little exciting, despite how mundane it would seem to anyone else. He pulls the file Kyungsoo gave him from out of his work bag, placing it on the table in front of them. “This is everything we have on the Darkling.”

Chanyeol reaches across the table to open the file, furrowing his eyebrows. “Is this all official?”

“It has all the official findings. Plus,” Baekhyun pauses. “personal observations from Kyungsoo.”

Chanyeol nods, quiet as he flips through the file. Baekhyun bites his lip when he passes the section with his case information, but the investigator just flips past it, backtracking to the first section. “So these are the suspects?” Baekhyun nods. Chanyeol hums. He stops on one file, turning it around to show to the groundskeeper. “This guy...he’s the only non-elf on the list.” Baekhyun takes note of the way Chanyeol’s eyebrows furrow when he says that.

“Okay.” He pulls the file closer to himself. Under the table, Lumi gets tired of Baekhyun and settles with Kibum, the nymph sipping a glass of water, keeping a watchful eye on his friend and the investigator. “Lee Jinki… he’d be forty-eight now.” 

“And,” Chanyeol reaches over the table, pointing to a line on the page, “he lives in Sincheok. That’s in the valley.”

Baekhyun nods, catching what Chanyeol’s getting at. Sincheok was only about a fifteen minute drive away. Still in Concord Valley, a place Baekhyun could go without fear of getting in trouble with the Ministry. “Any of the others stand out?” He asks, just in case.

Chanyeol’s eyebrow twitches, but his response is even. “Most of the others are dead.” He starts flipping through the suspects again. “Dead. Dead. High security prison. Dead. Doesn’t have legs. Dead. And high security prison again.” He closes the folder, folding his hands on top of it.

Baekhyun frowns. “Well, that’s a little disappointing. Is there any cause of death for the ones that are dead?”

Chanyeol shakes his head. “It’s not standard procedure to investigate elf death. Mostly because they do it themselves, and, according to Minho “ _ that’s not our problem _ ”.”

“Prick.” Kibum mutters under his breath.

“So those were all elves?” Baekhyun ignores the nymph, thinking back to their meeting with Minho, Jongdae, and Minseok, and when he proposed that the gateway was opened from the elf side. Minho was quick to agree with him, to go with his theory. 

“Yup.” Chanyeol says.

“And this Lee Jinki man is our only viable suspect right now?” Baekhyun has a weird feeling in his stomach, and his voice wavers. The prospect of going to talk to someone who just might be  _ the Darkling _ is terrifying to say the least. His stomach churns uncomfortably, and he feels Kibum’s leg twine with his under the table, the nymph showing his support in silence.

“Unless you want to try our luck at the Ministry prisons.” Chanyeol snorts. The groundskeeper sends him a dry look, and he moves on. “So now that we know where to start, I have some information to share, too. My, uhm, contacts that I met with today said there’s been a disturbance in one of the elf clans in Pyongyang.”

“Pyongyang?” Baekhyun tilts his head. “The gateway there was attacked last week...But how do your  _ contacts _ know there’s something wrong with the elves there?”

Chanyeol’s bat ears tinge pink at that. “They, uhm, they felt it.”

Baekhyun stares at the investigator like he grew a second head. Because, what the hell is that supposed to mean? “Sorry, what?” 

“They’re elves.” Kibum speaks up from next to Baekhyun. “Your contacts. They’re elves aren’t they?”

Baekhyun’s head whips around to stare at Kibum at the same time that Chanyeol starts sputtering incoherently. The nymph raises an eyebrow at the investigator. “I-I don’t know what you’re talking about!” Chanyeol tries. Baekhyun stares at him, blinking. He’s beginning to think the investigator isn’t as confident and professional as he always pretends to be, if this mini-meltdown is any indicator of anything.

“They felt it through the hum, right?” Kibum presses forward, ignoring Chanyeol’s pathetic stuttering.

“The what?” Baekhyun looks between Chanyeol and Kibum, feeling like he’s out of the loop.

Chanyeol slumps in his seat, defeated. “Yes, they’re elves, but please don’t tell anyone!” He turns pleading eyes on the two sat in front of him. “They could get in serious trouble...they’re ambassadors to the Ministry.”

“This is an embarassing color for you.” Baekhyun says, because it is, and it makes him feel marginally better about himself after all of the hostile encounters he’s had with the investigator. “You could’ve just said they were elves, I wouldn’t care.”

Chanyeol opens his mouth, probably about to curse him out, when Kibum quickly interjects. “Elves communicate through the hum, it’s a really powerful vibration that carries thoughts and emotions.”

Something clicks in Baekhyun’s brain then. “That’s what that sound at the temple is?”

Chanyeol gawks at him, jaw slack in shock. “What?” Baekhyun looks between Chanyeol and Kibum. “Doesn’t everyone hear that?”

“I mean.” Kibum says carefully. “I can hear it, because I’m a nymph, but  _ you  _ shouldn’t be able to hear it.”

“Oh.” The table goes silent, and Chanyeol is still staring at him, that look he always has on his face when he’s trying to figure Baekhyun out. It makes the groundskeeper a little uncomfortable, but it’s still better than the looks of disgust or discomfort that he’s used to from him. Baekhyun clears his throat. “So...what does that mean, Chanyeol?”

The taller man jumps at being addressed. “It could really only mean one thing.” He pauses, staring down at his lap. “They’re dead.” The room falls silent again as Baekhyun digests that information.

“All of them?” Baekhyun’s voice comes out in a whisper.

Chanyeol nods his head.

“That’s the only way they would be cut off from the hum.” Kibum says. “It follows you wherever you are so…”

Baekhyun can’t even think of what to say. He doesn’t know about elf clans, or how many elves are in a typical clan, but the thought of an  _ entire _ clan being wiped out by the Darkling...He shivers, feeling sick to his stomach. Baekhyun can’t even imagine  _ why  _ the Darkling would need to do such a thing, but he guesses he wouldn’t need one; He never got a reason for why he was tortured. 

“So tomorrow I think we should go to the temple first. My contacts will be there, and I’ll show them the file, see if they have any more information about the suspects.” Chanyeol breaks the timid silence. “Then we can go find Lee Jinki.”

Baekhyun nods, still too deep in thought to answer. “Okay.”

“Alright then!” Kibum claps his hands together, a habit Baekhyun knows he picked up from Minho. “I’m gonna go to bed then, you two have fun tomorrow.” And with that, the nymph stands up and leaves the room, Lumi padding behind him, her tail wagging. 

And that leaves Baekhyun and Chanyeol at the table, an awkward silence stretching between them. “So I’m taking the couch?” Chanyeol speaks up, snapping Baekhyun out of his thoughts.

“Yeah.” The groundskeeper rubs the heels of his palms into his eyes with a sigh. “You can shower down the hall, to the left, if you want to. I’ll get you a blanket.”

Chanyeol nods, grabbing his bag he brought with him that was slung across the dining table chair. Baekhyun leads him down the hallway, making sure he uses the guest bathroom,  _ not  _ his. 

Baekhyun takes the time to shower too, letting the water run hot, scorching his skin bright red. He steps out of the shower, glancing at himself in the mirror. A shiver wracks through his body. It’s been years since he’s had to meet new people, years since he had to adjust to the fact that he looks, well, like  _ that _ . Baekhyun frowns at himself, leaving the bathroom and slamming the door shut behind him.

When Baekhyun pads back into the living room, armful of blankets, Chanyeol is curled up on the couch in an oversized pink sweatshirt, playing a game on his phone, his long, bowed legs fully out and on display. 

Baekhyun blinks. It’s a sight he never wanted to see, the investigator in any kind of vulnerable position, even if it’s only him in his sleepwear. But Baekhyun is only a man, and he can’t help the twinge he feels at the sight of the flesh on Chanyeol’s thighs, pooling around where it’s settled into the couch cushions. Baekhyun shakes those thoughts from his mind, shoving them into a filing cabinet in a dark room. “Here.” He says stiffly, thrusting the blankets onto Chanyeol, who jumps, startled.

“Oh.” Chanyeol picks his phone up from where he dropped it on the floor with a thump. “Thank you.”

“Yup.” Baekhyun says, scratching the back of his neck. He doesn’t really know if he’s supposed to say something else in this situation, if he’s supposed to say anything more, if there’s anything else he should bring him. Chanyeol may be an asshole, but he’s still a guest, and Baekhyun is not a monster. “Do you, erm, do you need anything else?” He scratches the back of his neck, one eye screwed up as he tries to shrivel in on himself.

“I think I’m good.” Chanyeol says, hugging the blankets around his oversized form. He looks just as awkward as Baekhyun feels, which is slightly comforting.

“Ok well.” Baekhyun rocks back on his heels, taking a tentative step away from the couch. “Goodnight, then.”

“Goodnight.” Chanyeol dips his head, and Baekhyun nods back, turning on his heels and exiting the room swiftly. His whole body burns with that feeling of strangeness, of having the investigator in his house, of working with him. of being  _ civil  _ with him. Baekhyun passes the mirror in the hallway on the way to his bedroom, stopping to look at himself. He hugs his arms over his chest, giving a full body shiver.

“What’s gotten into you, Byun Baekhyun…” He mutters to himself, padding into his bedroom and climbing under his covers, grabbing his penguin plushie and squeezing it tightly to his chest.

In sleep, his dreams are haunted by dark shadows, sharp tendrils wrapping around his whole body, around his throat, over his eyes and mouth. He can’t breathe, he can’t see. Baekhyun thrashes in his sleep, kicking his blankets and punching his mattress feebly. It’s a familiar horror, a nightmare he’s lived through countless times before.

Baekhyun’s woken abruptly by a loud bang. He jolts up in bed, clutching his chest, ears straining to listen for any sound in the house. It’s silent for a few seconds, then suddenly he hears a loud “ _ fuck _ !”. The groundskeeper scrambles to get out of bed, reaching for his pen-sword on the bedside table, quickly igniting it and tip-toeing out his room in the direction the sounds are coming from.

Baekhyun creeps into the kitchen, light beam raised over his head, and is immediately greeted with a loud shriek. Baekhyun screams, swinging the beam and-

“What the fuck Baekhyun!”

It’s just Chanyeol, standing on one leg and cowering away from the groundskeeper, his huge eye nearly bulging out of his head. 

Baekhyun lowers his sword, blinking. “What the fuck are you doing in here?” The investigator is wearing an apron over his bright pink sweatshirt, and there’s a pot on the floor, now cut in half thanks to Baekhyun. 

Chanyeol lowers his raised leg, staring at Baekhyun like he’s grown a second head. “I was trying to make breakfast.” He gives the broken pot a half-hearted nudge with his foot. “But your stove wasn’t coming on so I tried to use my fire and I...I burned the soup.”

“How the hell do you burn soup?” Baekhyun scowls, crouching down to pick up the broken pot, and he sees the remains of the soup on the inside, burned to an unrecognizable black goop. “Seriously?” He turns the inside of the pot towards Chanyeol, who just shrugs.

“I couldn’t get the stove to turn on, it’s so  _ ancient _ .” He gives the appliance a scathing look, like it should be ashamed of itself. The investigator hovers around the kitchen awkwardly as Baekhyun hunts around the fridge and the pantry in search of something to salvage his morning. He’s still half asleep, the crust still stuck in the corners of his eyes, his brain still hazy. The groundskeeper turns on the rice cooker, turns on the stove, and gets a pan of chopped chicken cooking. Chanyeol resolves to sitting at the dining table, staying out the way. He dips his head politely when Baekhyun places their breakfast on the table, leaving a third plate out for Kibum in case he decides to wake up.

They eat in silence, the reality that they’ll really be working together finally settling in on them. Baekhyun doesn’t know what to think. He’s never been anywhere outside of Huiju, hasn’t seen new scenery since before he could remember. His stomach squirms around in anticipation, and he wolfs down his food so fast he’ll probably regret it later. “So what time are we meeting these people?” Baekhyun speaks up once he’s finished, bouncing his leg nervously underneath the table. 

Chanyeol pauses with a mouthful of rice, cheeks bulging as he checks his watch. “Ten minutes from now I think?” A few grains tumble out of his mouth, and Baekhyun wrinkles his nose at him.

“You almost done then?” Baekhyun dips his head at the investigator’s messy plate of food. Chanyeol picks up the fallen grains and stuffs them back in his mouth.

“Yeah gimme a minute.”

Down the hall, the toilet flushes; Kibum must be awake. Surely enough, the sound of Lumi’s paws padding on the hardwood comes closer, the dog appearing through the kitchen doorway. Kibum walks in right after her, rubbing his eyes. “Aren’t you supposed to be gone by now?”

“In a minute.” Baekhyun throws a glance towards Chanyeol, whose cheeks are swollen with food. The nymph snickers, joining them at the table, Lumi assuming her position under Baekhyun’s seat, whining as she begs for scraps. 

“I’m done!” Chanyeol says, throwing his napkin down on the plate. When he smiles there’s chicken in his teeth. 

Baekhyun stands to put the dishes away, but Kibum stops him. “I’ll take care of that, you go on ahead.”

“Thanks, Kib.” Baekhyun pats the nymph on the head affectionately, gesturing for Chanyeol to follow him towards the front door. Lumi pads after him, tongue lolling in excitement. “There’s food in the fridge, don’t steal from the neighbors!”

Baekhyun closes the front door behind them, shoving his hands in his coat pockets. Spring just won’t let go of the valley, holding on to the mountains in a vice grip. The groundskeeper shivers, burrowing down into his scarf. 

“What was that all about?” Chanyeol asks, and Baekhyun can hear his teeth chatter.

“Sometimes he steals from the neighbors.” Baekhyun unlocks the truck, letting Lumi jump in first before he climbs in. “It’s kind of a joke between us now.”

Chanyeol nods, buckling his seatbelt and folding his hands in his lap. He’s silent for a moment as Baekhyun starts up the truck, turning the temperature knob to the hottest setting. “He’s a nymph right?” Chanyeol asks. Baekhyun hums. “How do you know him? Aren’t you not supposed to, uh-“ Baekhyun glances at him out of the corner of his eye. The investigator bites his lip, looking like he’s trying hard not to sound offensive. “-interact, with him?”

Baekhyun tenses up, that single question bringing on a slew of memories all at once. “Technically, no.” He says. He clears his throat. “Obviously, it’s because Minho’s in love with him.” He glances at Chanyeol again, the investigator’s lips pursed in a pout, his eyebrows all screwed up. The truck is silent save for the sound of Lumi’s panting, Baekhyun taking them down the short drive back around the house to the temple. 

Outside the morning mist hangs thick and heavy around the temple, tumbling down the sides of the mountain in the dips and grooves of the valley. Baekhyun pulls his keys out of his coat pocket, but finds the door already open with a weird sense of deja vu. “Did Kyungsoo not let you borrow his keys?” The groundskeeper scowls at Chanyeol, opening the door with an agitated shove. The hum crowds his eardrums as soon as he steps inside, and he shivers.

“He did.” Chanyeol dips his head as he walks through to avoid hitting it on the arch above the gate. “I guess I forgot...I mean no one else really comes here, right?”

Baekhyun sends him a withering glare, wondering how it's possible for a person to be this stupid. He just shakes his head, taking a look around at the place. At least it looks untouched. Sometimes the boys from downtown like to come up on weekend nights and party. Baekhyun had his fair share of chasing them off, hiding up on a rooftop and making shadow puppets on the walls, watching them scream and run away calling for their mothers. “Where are they meeting us?”

“At the border.” Chanyeol pushes ahead, heading towards the hallway door that leads outside.

“Is it still open?” Baekhyun frowns, him and Lumi padding after him. The grass by the tower is vacant, thankfully. He remembers the dead elf on the grass where he stands now, and a cold shudder runs through him.

“Nope.” Chanyeol shrugs his shoulders up to his ears, burrowing into his hoodie. “Minho sealed it before he left, but they have a pass to get in.”

“How does that work?” Baekhyun furrows his eyebrows, scanning the area beyond the tower. He thinks about how strange it is for an entire tribe of people to live so close to him, without ever knowing, seeing, or interacting with them. “Is it like an I.D card or something?”

Chanyeol gives him a weird look. “It is, actually, but not the way you’re thinking. It’s really just a blank piece of paper with a spell on it that allows them to pass between borders.”

Baekhyun nods. The mist rolls through the mountains, seeping through Baekhyun’s clothes. Just when he’s about to ask if they were early, Chanyeol says, “ahh, here they are.”

Just beyond the tower, two small, slim, figures emerge through the mist. Baekhyun takes a small step back, disoriented for a second. They’re...glowing. He doesn’t know how it’s possible, especially in the daylight, but they are. 

The two women stop a few feet in front of them, and Baekhyun can’t seem to shut his jaw.

“Chanyeollie.” One of them says, clasping her hands together. Baekhyun is absolutely mesmerized by her; her purple hair that matches her long purple coat, but the most mesmerizing thing are the lights that hang above her head, like fireflies. It reminds him of Lumi when she releases her light to help Baekhyun. “Is this the one you told us about?”

“Yes.” Chanyeol’s grating voice snaps Baekhyun out of his reverie. “Baekhyun, Moonbyul and Yongsun. Yongsun, Moonbyul, this is Baekhyun.” The investigator gestures to each girl.

“Very nice to meet you.” Moonbyul, the purple haired one, bows to Baekhyun, and he returns it.

“Hello.” The other girl, Yongsun, says, bowing politely. Her space buns bob as she does, and Baekhyun notices she has little lights above her head, too, but smaller, and moving more frequently than Moonbyul’s do. “Chanyeollie mentioned you’re the caretaker of our temple?”

Baekhyun nods, but he feels a moment of strangeness at her saying “our temple”. He can’t help but wonder if the elves can see him on the other side of the border when he’s here. “Nearly my whole life, actually.” 

“You’ve done a great job, Baekhyunie.” Moonbyul smiles at him, and Baekhyun can’t help the blush he feels creeping up his neck. He nods his head in thanks. She glances down, spotting Lumi sat at the groundskeeper’s ankles. “Oh! What a beautiful spirit dog you have!” She bends down to scratch Lumi behind the ears, the dog leaning into her touch, basking in the sudden attention.

“So Chanyeollie says you’re trying to find the Darkling?” Yongsun speaks up, the lights around her head dancing rapidly, reflecting the sunlight back into Baekhyun’s eyes. “We already talked yesterday, but is there anything else that you needed?”

“Yes, uhm.” Chanyeol answers for him, fumbling with his bag and pulling out Kyungsoo’s file. “Do you guys know anything about this man?” Baekhyun peeks over at him, and sees him turn to the page with Lee Jinki’s file.

Moonbyul pulls away from Lumi, standing to peak at the picture in Chanyeol’s hand. The elves lean closer to look at the picture, humming in sync. “That’s Lee Jinki, right?”

“Yes.” Baekhyun interjects before Chanyeol can answer. “He’s the last viable human suspect on the list.” 

Moonbyul pulls away from the file, looking up at them. “He’s a farmer, he lives on the north side of the border.”

“I’ve seen him out watering his plants.” Yongsun smiles. “He’s a very sweet man, I don’t know how the Ministry ever suspected him.”

“Seriously?” Chanyeol frowns at the elves. “You really haven’t seen anything suspicious.”

The elves shake their heads in sync, the way they seem to do everything else. “He has so many cats, probably around  _ ten  _ cats.” Yongsun says. “I really don’t think he’s actively leaving that house, much less performing ritual sacrifices.”

Moonbyul bobs her head in agreement. “Is he really your best suspect right now? Surely there’s somebody else?”

“No one else.” Chanyeol says. “Everyone else on the list is dead. Or in prison.”

The two elves share a look. “Well, good luck with him I guess, but we don’t see him as a threat.” Yongsun says, clasping her hands together in front of her. “Is that all, Chanyeollie.”

Baekhyun turns to the investigator, raising an eyebrow. “Erm, would you mind explaining the disappeared clan to him? I don’t really...understand how the hum works.”

“Ah, yes, that.” Moonbyul turns to face Baekhyun, who blushes. “Well, as we already explained to Chanyeollie, we lost connection with the Pyongyang clan last week. Yongsun noticed it before me, so we contacted our clan’s Speaker, and he pretty much confirmed it, they were just completely gone. Poof.” She spreads her hands to articulate the last word.

“But how?” Baekhyun frowns, glancing between the three of them. He feels like he’s out of the loop. It’s not an unfamiliar feeling.

“The hum is energy.” Yongsun speaks up when Moonbyul appears to struggle with the right words to say. “All elves can feel and interpret it, it’s how we communicate. We can basically all hear each other’s thoughts, and feel all our emotions. When you humans bond with each other, you access the hum, but on a really small level.” 

“Oh, so...you could all just feel when the whole clan, uhm, disconnected?” Baekhyun thinks he understands now. He thinks back to all the times Kibum has complained about  _ feeling  _ Minho nearby, or, when they were together, how close he felt to him.

The elves not, their faces somber, and Baekhyun nods, not wanting to probe any further. 

After a moment of silence, Chanyeol clears his throat. “Well, thank you for your time, Moonbyul, Yongsun.” He bows to each of them in turn. They return it, Moonbyul turning to Baekhyun.

“It was nice to meet you, Baekhyunie.” She smiles and the lights above her all shiver like leaves in a windstorm. “We wish you luck with your investigations.” Yongsun nods.

“Thank you for your help.” Baekhyun says awkwardly, unsure whether to add honorifics at the end.

And with that, the two elves join hands and retreat back into the forest, the mist seeming to part for them as they go. Baekhyun can still spot the lights above them. Lumi whines as they leave, settling down onto the grass and placing her head in her paws. “Well…” Baekhyun sighs once they’re gone. “Ready to go to Lee Jinki’s?”

“I guess so.” Chanyeol turns on his heel, trudging back to the temple. Baekhyun can tell he’s disappointed in this visit too by the way his shoulders slump. They walk back to the truck in silence, only broken by the sound of Lumi’s panting.

They climb into the truck, Baekhyun turning the heat on high. “Do you have directions?”

“Yeah, I got it.” Chanyeol takes out his phone to search up the directions. As he does so, Baekhyun bites his lip wondering if he should share his concerns. 

“What are we going to do if he is really the Darkling?” Baekhyun blurts out.

Chanyeol nearly drops his phone, fumbling to catch it. “Uhm.” He looks up at Baekhyun, his eyebrows furrowed. “In  _ my  _ opinion...I don’t think he is.”

Baekhyun frowns back at him, mirroring his expression. “Then why are we doing this?”

“Well, Yongsun and Moonbyul think he’s innocent.” Chanyeol says. “He probably knows  _ something _ . I think it’s a good place to start.”

“And how do you know he won’t immediately turn us into roadkill the minute we knock on his door?” Baekhyun purses his lips, rapping his thumbs on the steering wheel.

Chanyeol takes a second to respond, staring up at the roof of the truck in thought. “I mean...let’s say he is the Darkling. I don’t think he’d risk killing  _ you _ …” He trails off quietly, averting his gaze from Baekhyun, who stares at him, blinking.

“What?”

“I read your file last night.” Chanyeol shifts in his seat.

Baekhyun stares at the investigator, speechless. He opens his mouth to say something, to get angry with him, but he closes it again. He can’t really blame him for that, he did leave the file out for him last night. “Okay.” Baekhyun says instead, clearing his throat and starting the truck up. “Give me the directions.”

Chanyeol fumbles to start the route on his phone, dropping it in the console in front of the gear shifter. Baekhyun pulls the truck out, and drives back down the mountain.

He turns the radio on to ease some of the awkward quiet that still lingers between them. Baekhyun still doesn’t really know how he should act around Chanyeol, if he should make small talk, tell him he looks stupid in that hat, or just be silent. He isn’t sure if Chanyeol still hates him so much, if he still holds his grudge against him. Baekhyun glances at the investigator out of the corner of his eye, and sees him staring out the window, tapping his fingers on the passenger door along to the music. He has this air of mystery around him that he just can’t seem to put his finger on, an odd feeling in the back of his mind that won’t swim to the surface. There’s so much Baekhyun doesn’t know. And yet, there’s so much Chanyeol knows about him. He read his file, and although Baekhyun hasn’t read it himself, he can make a good guess as to what’s in it. It only adds to the weird feeling crawling down his skin, similar to the time they used the sight-sharing spell.

Baekhyun shakes his head from his thoughts, and focuses back on the road.

It only takes fifteen minutes to reach Lee Jinki’s house. 

Baekhyun had always thought Huiju was a small town, that is, until he saw Sincheok. 

There’s one gas station that connects three dirt roads, all going in different directions. It’s quiet, an odd feeling settling over Baekhyun. He turns down the dirt road heading to the right, the truck bumping along on the uneven ground. 

“It should be just five minutes now.” Chanyeol murmurs, staring down at the map on his phone. “It says his house is the only one on this whole road.”

“Great.” Baekhyun murmurs under his breath. Lumi seems to sense his unease, throwing a paw over his thigh, staring up at him with her bright eyes.

The house sits as the only thing at the end of the road; a small, wooden house. It doesn’t appear unsettling, not in the way it would in horror movies; a small house in the middle of nowhere. Nevertheless, Baekhyun is unsettled.

“What the hell do we even say?” Baekhyun says as he parks the car, shutting it off.

Chanyeol makes no move to get out, staring out the window at the house, his eyebrows furrowed. “We probably shouldn’t say that we’re from the Ministry in case that scares him off.”

Baekhyun grunts under his breath in agreement. “So, what, then? It’s not like we can pretend to be concerned neighbors, literally no one lives here.”

Chanyeol hums, tapping the door handle. “We could say we’re with the Darkling?” 

Baekhyun snorts. “I’m just going to pretend you didn’t say that.” Chanyeol glares at him over his shoulder. “Why don’t we just say we’re concerned about the Darkling, and want to talk? If he has information he’ll let us in, right?”

“I mean I guess.” Chanyeol wrinkles his nose, but opens his door all the same. “If you scare him away, that’s on you.”

Baekhyun rolls his eyes, opening his door, allowing Lumi to jump out after him. There was no way he was going in there without her.

It’s quiet, not the same quiet as Baekhyun’s house in the mountains. No birds cawing, no insects buzzing, no sounds of distant animals. It’s complete silence. Like they were in a vacuum. Baekhyun gulps as they approach the front door. 

Chanyeol glances at him, and Baekhyun nods, and he knocks.

Immediately, Baekhyun hears the sound of cats yowling. He jumps at the unexpected noise, and Lumi barks back at them. Him and Chanyeol share a look, and Baekhyun’s hand instinctively reaches for the holster on his hip.

A slat on the door opens with a slam, startling both Baekhyun and Chanyeol, the former whirling towards the sound with his pen, ready to ignite it, when he’s met with a set of empty, white eyes. 

“Who is it?” comes a voice, whisper soft, as if afraid to break the silence of the valley. “What do you want?”

Baekhyun and Chanyeol share an unsure look, the taller speaking up for them. “We’re here about the Darkling? We were wondering if you-.”

“You with the Ministry?” Lee Jinki interrupts, the eyes behind the slat narrowing. “I ain’t speaking with no Ministry scum.”

“We’re not Ministry!” Chanyeol waves his hands frantically, trying to assure the man. “We’re a…” He looks over at Baekhyun for help, but the groundskeeper just shrugs. “concerned third party.”

The man behind the door is silent for a second, then the slat slams shut.

“Great.” Baekhyun sighs, shoulders drooping. “You scared him off.”

“I did  _ not _ .” Chanyeol scoffs, his ears turning bright red.

The sound of several locks opening interrupts Baekhyun before he can speak. They stand back as the door opens, revealing a man even shorter in stature than Baekhyun, hunched over a cane. The man looks up at Baekhyun, and he nearly falls over himself, stumbling backwards and tripping over his cane. 

Chanyeol surges forwards to catch him while Baekhyun stands frozen, an ugly feeling he’s well familiar with gripping at his lungs. Is his face really that bad? Is he really so horrid that he’s-

“It’s you.” Lee Jinki says, clutching onto Chanyeol’s arm and his cane like a vice. He stares Baekhyun directly in the eye with his two stark white ones, and, for once, Baekhyun is the one to avert his gaze. “Byun Baekhyun.”

The groundskeeper doesn't quite know what to say, looking over at Chanyeol for help, but the investigator looks just as confused as he is. 

“What?” Baekhyun says, his voice coming out choked.

“Come. Come sit.” Lee Jinki says, cutting through the charged air in the room. “Come.” 

The man pushes away from Chanyeol, leading the pair through a house in better condition than Baekhyun would have guessed considering the state of the man who owns it. Lee Jinki takes them to a sunroom, with a woven couch and reclining chair, the man lowering himself into the chair carefully. Baekhyun picks up the cat laying on the couch carefully, taking a seat, Chanyeol taking the other side of the couch. Lumi settles at the groundskeeper’s feet, letting out a small growl at the sight of the cat.

“Sir…” Baekhyun says carefully. The cat stretches out across his lap, pawing at his face. “How do you know who I am?”

Lee Jinki turns his head to face the pair on his couch. He blinks, and Baekhyun shudders at the sight of his pure white eyes. He wonders for a second if he can see them, but, then again, he did recognize him, somehow, at the front door.

“Why are you two here?” The man says instead.

Baekhyun frowns, glancing over at Chanyeol, who looks positively puzzled, sitting on the edge of the couch, like the man with the cane could jump at them at any second.

“Well, there was an incident in Huiju, and we think the Darkling is involved.” Chanyeol speaks up, his voice trembling. The cat climbs out of Baekhyun’s lap and into his, making the investigator jump.

Lee Jinki doesn’t respond, staring at them with those damn eyes. Baekhyun squirms in his seat, feeling terribly uncomfortable. “And why did you come to me?”

“You were in the Ministry’s list of official suspects in the Darkling case.” Chanyeol admits. “We just wanted to know what information you have?”

Jinki turns his gaze directly onto Chanyeol. Baekhyun glances between the two, seeing Chanyeol stare down at his lap. “Are you with the Ministry or not?” His eyes narrow, and he leans forwards in his seat.

“No no no!” Chanyeol waves his hands profusely. “We got it through a friend, I swear!”

Jinki slumps back in his seat. Chanyeol looks over at Baekhyun, eyebrows furrowed in worry. The older man is quiet, but the silence is less unsettling now that Baekhyun can actually see the life inside. Out of the corner of his eyes, he can see cats creeping around the place. He counts at least ten different cats, roaming the halls, mewling intermittently. Lumi rumbles out a soft growl as they pass. Whoever this Lee Jinki was really, and however he knew Baekhyun, the groundskeeper thinks it's safe to rule him out as a threat. 

Lee Jinki sighs, finally turning back to face Baekhyun and Chanyeol on the couch. “Byun Baekhyun.” He says, his voice losing all of its hardness, turning into something softer. “You shouldn’t have come here.”

A jolt of fear strikes through Baekhyun like a bolt of lightning. “What?” The groundskeeper croaks, his voice cracking.

“He’ll know.” Jinki’s milky white eyes drift absently to somewhere above Baekhyun’s head, the movement visible from the bloodshot veins in the corners. 

“The Darkling?” Chanyeol whispers, and Baekhyun glances back at him. The investigator’s eyes are wide, his leg bouncing on the wooden floor, creaking. 

Lee Jinki only hums in response, his hands tightening around his cane. Baekhyun follows the movement, and notices how oddly discolored they are. The flesh is an odd mixture of red and purple, the texture uneven, hanging disjointedly over his knuckles, over his fingers. Something clicks in Baekhyun’s mind at the sight of them.

“Sir…” He says carefully. “Who are you?”

In lieu of a response, Jinki hauls himself to his feet, leaning on his cane, and walks towards the fireplace behind the couch. Baekhyun waits with bated breath, nerves alight with anticipation, to understand this mysterious man, and how they were connected.

The older man comes back around the couch, a wooden box in the hand not gripping the cane. He sits back down, undoing the clasps of the box with his shaky hands. He pulls out a wooden frame, stroking the edge with a gnarled thumb before passing it over to Baekhyun, who scrambles to take it with careful hands. 

It’s a picture frame, the picture inside slightly grainy, but colorful. In the middle of the photograph is-

Baekhyun gasps, his hand automatically coming up to clutch the locket he keeps around his neck. “This…” He tries, but falls silent, his mouth hanging open in shock.

“What is it?” Chanyeol says from beside him, looking up and between Baekhyun and Lee Jinki. 

Baekhyun doesn’t respond, looking back up at Jinki, mouth agape.

“Yes.” Jinki nods, a ghost of a smile twitching on the corner of his lips. “That’s me with them.”

In the photograph, two families pose for the photo in front of what looks like a much older version of Jinki’s house. Jinki stands a little to the left of the center, his arm around a woman much shorter than him, a little boy standing between them. And on the other side of him-

“My parents.” Baekhyun whispers to himself, his thumb stroking down the photograph, tracing over where they stand next to what he assumes is Jinki’s family. Between his mom and dad stands him, tiny Baekhyun, wearing a tiny pair of overalls, and holding one of his mom’s fingers in his tiny fist. He feels the tears welling up in his eyes before he can stop them, spilling over quietly. Lumi turns to rest her head in Baekhyun’s lap, glowing with her warmth to comfort him. He uses his free hand to stroke her ears in thanks.

“We took that when my wife and I bought this house.” Jinki says, and Baekhyun nods, unable to look away from the photo. “You and my son were running around the yard, chasing the peacocks.”

Baekhyun sniffs, quickly wiping his eyes before tearing them away from the photo. “How did you know my parents?” He can’t help the way his voice warbles.

“Your mother and I were friends from University.” Jinki smiles, folding his hands in his lap, staring up at the ceiling wistfully. “She was my son’s godmother, just as I am  _ your _ godfather.” He looks back down at Baekhyun at that. 

Baekhyun didn’t think it was possible for his jaw to drop any lower. “You..You’re my  _ godfather _ ?” He glances over at Chanyeol, who looks just as shocked as he is, but detached from the situation, pressed into the corner of the couch. A small part of Baekhyun is grateful for the investigator’s silence to allow him to share this moment with Lee Jinki before getting back to official business.

The older man nods, blinking wistfully down at the photograph in Baekhyun’s hands.

“I don’t mean to interrupt, or to be rude…” Chanyeol says quietly, Baekhyun and Jinki turn to look at him. “But...what happened to them? Your family?”

The atmosphere in the room quickly goes heavy, and that’s when Baekhyun notices it; the emptiness of the house. There were cats everywhere, in Chanyeol’s lap, roaming the hallways, sleeping under the coffee table, and yet, it was just...empty. Like there was something missing, some several things. An empty armchair on the other corner of the couch. The barren shoe rack in the hallway from the front door. A silence in the house that shouldn’t be in a space supposed to be occupied by three people.

Jinki closes his eyes, leaning back in the armchair one again. “You’re here about the Darkling.” It’s a statement, not a question. Baekhyun already feels the ache starting to grip at his heart. He has a feeling he knows what’s coming. “Twenty-four years ago, you were born.” He says to Baekhyun. “And twenty-four years ago, the brightest star in the universe died, collapsing in on itself. It was on the news everywhere, even in the magical community, because we could all see it. You looked up in the sky and there was just this  _ huge _ ball of light.” Jinki pauses, opening his eyes to glance at Baekhyun briefly

The groundskeeper’s breath hitches, his stomach flopping over itself.

“We let you and your parents stay with us after you were born. And that’s when the Ministry came and found you.” Jinki pauses, and the weight of his words hangs in the room, heavier than the fog outside.

“What happened?” Baekhyun whispers, afraid to speak any louder. 

“Well.” Jinki glances around the room wildly, as if to check that no one else was listening. “That also happens to be when the Darkling found you.” 

Baekhyun stills, and Lumi pressed further into his lap, lifting a paw up onto him, sensing his discomfort. He strokes the paw, holding onto it like a lifeline.

“And that’s where everything went wrong.” Jinki frowns. “It was like a tempest, a terrible storm that killed your parents, and my wife. He left me alive and took you and my son. He left me alive to find you.”

Baekhyun feels Chanyeol shift closer to him on the couch, in some awkward, stilted form of emotional support. 

“It took me weeks to find you. I never found my boy. I never found my son.” The older man’s voice cracks, like a wound that never fully heals, even after eighteen long years. “I rescued you, and took you back to the Ministry. I didn’t know where else to go. You were so out of it, I had to carry you, but, even, then, you burned my hands.” Jinki holds his hands up in explanation, showing the malformed skin and melted nail beds.

Baekhyun takes a moment to process everything, a thousand emotions running through his head at once, his brian working overtime. “How did you escape? He should have killed you.”

“I didn’t even think about it at that time. The only thing I cared about was getting you out of there safely.” A single tear falls from Jinki’s glass eyes. “I couldn’t have possibly known that he would use that against me. That he’d frame me.”

Jinki’s words send an unpleasant shiver racing down every inch of Baekhyun’s skin. He shares a glance with Chanyeol, and he knows they’re thinking the same thing.

“Sir...do you know who the Darkling is?” Chanyeol asks.

Jinki gives them a long look, white eyes boring into them. “He framed me. I brought you back and suddenly I was the main suspect. They figured I did it, since everyone was found dead in  _ my  _ house, and that I was able to bring you back unharmed.” 

Baekhyun takes note of him ignoring the question.

“Thank you.” Baekhyun says, bowing to him from his seat. “Thank you for saving me.”

Jinki gives him a small smile. “I’m going to go make tea. Would you two like some?”

“Yes, please.” Chanyeol bows. The cat in his lap kicks at his chest. “Thank you.”

Jinki hauls himself to his feet, dragging himself from the sunroom and into the kitchen.

Baekhyun and Chanyeol sit in silence, the groundskeeper staring down at the photograph still in his hands, the events of the last hour ping-ponging around in his brain, moving so rapidly he can’t catch a single one of them long enough to process it.

“Are you okay?” Chanyeol says softly.

It startles Baekhyun, something he wouldn’t have expected to come out of the other man’s mouth. 

“I don’t know.” Baekhyun says, and he’s being completely honest. He doesn’t know how he feels. It’s going to take more than just a day to process everything Jinki had told them.

“That’s you, right?” Chanyeol says, pointing to the tiny Baekhyun in the photo. 

“Yeah.” Baekhyun smiles slightly.

“Back before…” Chanyeol starts, but trails off, probably not wanting to come off as rude. But Baekhyun knows exactly what he means.

“Yeah.” Baekhyun whispers, thumb stroking over his parents. “Back then.”

A comfortable silence falls over them, the first one they’ve probably ever had, and Baekhyun’s heart aches. For his family, for his newfound godfather, for Chanyeol, who has been nothing but kind to him today. It’s like he’s had his entire  _ world _ upside down, but not necessarily in a bad way.

The silence is broken by the sound of glass shattering somewhere in the house. Baekhyun and Chanyeol look at each other, and simultaneously spring up from the couch, Lumi bounding after them.

Baekhyun’s heart drops when they get to the kitchen.

Jinki is pinned up against the wall, surrounded by a swirling black cloud. Black, wispy tendrils hold him by the throat, Jinki’s hands desperately trying to pull them away.

Baekhyun and Chanyeol draw their swords at the same time, the groundskeeper igniting his pen by borrowing Lumi’s energy, Chanyeol’s sword erupting in blue flames. Chanyeol swings directly into the cloud, the impact causing an explosion of bright white light. Baekhyun throws an arm over his eyes to shield himself. 

He recovers, jumping onto the counter in the center of the room and swinging his light beam at the tendril pinning Jinki to the wall. He makes contact and the black cloud surges all around him, a deafening sound echoing through the room, a shriek like nails on a chalkboard. 

Jinki drops to the floor with a thud. The dark cloud rushes to the left. Baekhyun whirls around to follow its movements, readying his sword.

It slams into Chanyeol, the investigator flying into the china cabinet behind him. 

“Chanyeol!” Baekhyun yells, jumping off the cabinet, bringing his sword down on the darkness in a wide arc, slicing right through it. The sound rings again, and the cloud flings itself over Baekhyun’s head, ramming through the kitchen window and shattering glass everywhere, Jinki’s limp body on the ground taking the brunt of it.

Chanyeol grunts, picking himself up off the ground. “Check on Jinki, I’m going after him!” Baekhyun yells, racing for the front door.

“Baekhyun, don’t-,” is the last thing he hears before he’s out the front door, chasing after the black cloud in the middle of the clear field.

“Face me you fucking bastard!” Baekhyun screams, pumping his legs as fast as they’ll go. Lumi bounds beside him, crackling with energy. Baekhyun feels it flow through his veins like it’s a part of his blood. 

The cloud stops abruptly, turning over itself and rushing towards Baekhyun, swirling around him and Lumi, the pair becoming the eye of the storm. 

Baekhyun throws himself over Lumi to protect her from the cloud, keeping his light beam raised about his head. Inky tendrils shoot from the swirling darkness, and he blocks them, gritting his teeth as the sheer force nearly knocks him over. He swings back, slicing a tendril in half with a spark of lightning.

“ _ Byun Baekhyun… _ ” The cloud croaks, the voice coming from every direction at once, echoing. The tendrils snake out around, and Baekhyun falters, frozen in place. They grab at his wrists, squeezing so hard the light beam falls from his hand, extinguishing itself on the grass.

Baekhyun struggles against the restraints, but to no avail. Underneath him. Lumi whimpers, gnawing at the dark tendrils in an attempt to release him. Three more wrap around him; two around his ankles, one curling tight around his throat, and he feels himself being liften in the air. He tries to scream but nothing comes out, his vision goes black at the edges. Desperately, he throws his consciousness out, searching for light, for something stronger than Lumi’s presence. He feels himself flying higher and higher, the ground and Lumi growing further away. As he’s about to pass out, he finds it; the energy, crackling through his veins, thrumming through his body. Humming.

He releases it.

The world goes white, and Baekhyun feels himself falling.

Then the world goes black.

**__________________________________________**

**Eighteen Years Earlier**

Just outside of Seoul, there’s a mansion atop a hill. It’s more of a palace than a mansion, the size of a small village. The windows large glass panes from floor to ceiling. 

Kihyun pads through it quietly, his slippers sliding easily along the marble floors. A crowd of diplomats pass through, talking in jovial tones. He pauses to bow to them as they pass, the group ignoring him, just as they all always do. He waits until they’re long gone before he straightens up, running his hands down the creases of his robes.

He takes the long path down the hallway, reaching the doorway at the end and to the left without any more interruptions. Kihyun knocks on the carved obsidian door once before he turns the jade knob, pushing the door open with a grunt. 

“Kiki!” A squeaky voice immediately greets him, and the elf finds his arms full of a small, wiggling bundle. 

“Ready for your walk?” Kihyun says, keeping his voice even. The boy’s small hands reach up and grab his elf ears, tugging at them. “Ah, ah, ah, go get your shoes on.” He dumps the boy on the ground, urging him away. He runs forward as fast as his stubby legs will carry him, digging out his tiny shoes from underneath his bed.

Kihyun waits patiently, his arms folded behind his back. The boy’s room is way too big for a child his age, but who is Kihyun to argue against the master’s wishes. 

“Ready Kiki!” The boy resurfaces from under the bed, shoes on, but untied. The elf sighs, pulling his robes back as he kneels to tie them for him. “Thank you Kiki.” He gives the boy an affectionate pinch of the cheek before straightening up and taking his hand, leading him back out into the hallway.

Kihyun turns into a different hallway, the one that leads out into the secluded garden to the right of the mansion. The boy waddles along with him, craning his neck around, like he’s looking for someone. “What is it?” Kihyun asks, averting his eyes from the obsidian door in the middle of this hallway, straightening his collar with his free hand.

“Can Baekhyunee come out to play yet?” The boy pouts, looking up at the elf with his best puppy dog eyes. Kihyun looks away.

“Not yet.”

Kihyun opens the sliding door leading outside, picking the boy up so he doesn’t trip going down the stairs.

Outside, it’s sunny, the birds chirping happily, flitting around the perfectly trimmed hedges lining the garden. He takes the boy on their usual route, up and down all the pathways made by the hedges, the boy stopping every few minutes to grab at the leaves, pulling them off and stuffing them in his overalls pockets. Thankfully, he doesn’t ask after the other boy for the duration of their walk, babbling on about a dream he had last night, or was it from last week? They pass a few other attendants, tending to the plants. They bow to Kihyun as he passes them, who feels them buzzing with unease, a frequency in the hum he’s become accustomed to. It doesn’t bother him as much as it used to, and he dips his head to them politely. 

They make it through the gardens and back to the mansion just before noon. In the guest dining hall, the other elves have made a substantial meal for the two of them, Kihyun helping the boy into his chair at the end of the table, taking the seat to the left of it for himself. 

On the table in front of them is a feast of different cuts of pork, all cooked perfectly, the grill marks on them just the way that Kihyun prefers. “Come and sit.” Kihyun says to the elves standing by against the walls. He feels their hesitation, a nervous hum thrumming through the room. He looks up from his plate, making eye contact with the elf in the center of the group, and they all rush to take their seats around the dining table, the hum buzzing with nervous gratitude. 

The boy tries to make conversation with the elves, babbling on about his walk with 

‘Kiki’, growing frustrated when the elves don’t answer. They look between themselves, the hum abuzz with questions about the young master, some rude, throwing insults at him.

Kihyun glares at the young elf across the table, Yuchan, if he remembers correctly. “Enough.” He saws, his voice low with warning. 

Immediately, like a candle being blown out, the hum goes silent, the elves around the table avoiding Kihyun’s gaze. He can feel their anger, their frustration, but there’s nothing he can do to comfort them, so he goes back to eating his food, passing the bowl of gingkos over to the boy, who thanks him solemnly.

After lunch, Kihyun walks the boy back to his room, steering clear of that particular hallway, dropping him off in his room.

“Can Kiki stay?” The boy pouts, turning his big, watery eyes on the elf.

Kihyun hesitates for a moment. Could he?

“I have to speak with the master first.” Kihyun says, untying the boys shoes, removing them carefully and placing them on his shoe rack where they belong. He bites his lip. “I’ll return later.”

The boy's expression immediately brightens, and he throws his arms around Kihyun’s neck in a tight embrace. The elf freezes, hesitating, before patting the boy’s back gently.

“I’ll be back” He promises.

Kihyun is in the middle of shutting and locking the obsidian doors when a voice behind him makes him nearly jump out of his own skin. “Come to my office.” The voice is thick and greasy, the audible embodiment of oil. The elf bows, following after the master with his head bowed.

The office is just down the hall from the boy’s bedroom, behind a set of pure gold doors. instead of the regular obsidian. Kihyun kneels before the desk in the middle of the room, waiting for the master to address him. 

“You are to take the boy back tomorrow.” He says, rolling his forefinger and thumb together. Kihyun glances up and can’t help but notice the smears of blood trailing down from his hand to his forearms. He averts his eyes back to his lap with a shiver.

“Which boy, sir?” Kihyun asks, feeling nauseous, his insides turning around on each other. “Taemin?”

“The other one.” 

Kihyun looks up, his brow furrowing in confusion. “Sir? But why?”

“Someone's looking for him, and the elves are helping him.” The master flips through the papers on his table like his hands aren’t covered in blood. “I can’t risk any of them helping find him.”

Kihyun is silent for a minute, frowning. “Where do I take him, sir?”

“To the mountains.”

Kihyun’s frown only deepens. “What about Taemin then? Surely they’ll be looking for him too.”

The master’s gaze flicks down to meet Kihyun’s, and the elf’s body wracks in a horrible shiver. “He is unimportant. I’ll be keeping him. You are dismissed.”

Kihyun scrambles to stand, bowing and leaving the room without another word.

He spends the rest of the day with Taemin, reading to him, having a tea party, playing hide and seek. It helps take the elf’s mind off what he has to do tomorrow. He hasn’t seen the Byun boy the whole time he’s been here, the master preferring to keep him to himself, tended to by some of the silent elves. Kihyun shivers to think of what the master has been doing to him. 

But that’s unimportant.

Kihyun has a job to do if he wants to stay alive.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> third chapter will be posted in either two or three weeks depending on what i can get done!

**Author's Note:**

> the first chapter will be posted on October 28th


End file.
